The Prince of Flame
by Gadget 151
Summary: Rewrite of 'potion master's assistant' Halo Spencer tells the story in place of Marlowe. He's come to England to escape a serial killer he comes to Hogwarts looking for work. Slash HaloSnape. Final chapter up now! Please Review!
1. Prologue

**Prologue **

"_I see nothing in your eyes, and the more I see the less I like. Is it over yet, in my head? I know nothing of your kind, and I won't reveal your evil mind. Is it over yet? I can't win. So sacrifice yourself, and let me have what's left. I know that I can find the fire in your eyes. I'm going all the way, get away, please. You take the breath right out of me. You left a hole where my heart should be. You got to fight just to make it through, 'cause I will be the death of you. This will be all over soon. Pour salt into the open wound. Is it over yet? Let me in. So sacrifice yourself, and let me have what's left. I know that I can find the fire in your eyes. I'm going all the way, get away, please. You take the breath right out of me. You left a hole where my heart should be. You got to fight just to make it through, 'cause I will be the death of you."_ **Breaking Benjamin- _"Breath."_**_  
_

It was Sunday, and the early morning sun was shining through the airplane window, hitting me square in the face. Ryan's funeral had been on a Sunday six months ago; it had been a closed casket, as per his family's wishes. He'd wanted to be cremated; he'd even told me once where he'd wanted his ashes scattered. My opinions and his wished hadn't mattered to his father though. The man had hated that his only son was a homosexual and living with an 'adopted, spoiled brat'. I had told him to sit and spin.

I pulled the side of my coat closer to my face, hiding in the folds of soft leather. It was odd; the thing I remembered most about the funeral was my grandmother scolding me for keeping on my sunglasses. It had been raining that Sunday, as if even the heavens mourned the death of the man I'd loved. The clouds had opened and the tears of angels had fallen onto the casket, making the dirt turn to mud. I hadn't believed in angels since I was seven, when I'd held a dying bird in my hands after it had flown into the window.

I felt a single tear roll down my cheek and I hastily wiped it away. I didn't believe in angels, or in heaven. But for Ryan… for Ryan I would believe in anything.


	2. Chapter 1

**The Prince of Flame.**

DISCLAIMER- So, here is the promised re-write of "the potion master's assistant." Harry Potter belongs to J.K. Rowling, Halo Spencer, however, is mine. Hope everyone enjoys the new version, and I swear I'll finish this one.

"_I went to sleep last night wondering how I'd feel if I woke up tomorrow and you were almost healed. If you could use your hands, what would you use them for? Would it be to strangle me? Because you just can't... Hold down, why don't you just be the wave that washes over me? Hold down, why can't I just be the one that carries all of you? And I can see it in your eyes. I'll rest my head tonight, thoughts I can't reveal. The shame inside of me, the fate they've tried to seal. If you could use your hands, what would you use them for? Would it be to strangle me, or just try to ignore, the fact that they don't care, why they stop and stare? Why they put you in that dusty dirty chair? Everyday is hard, hard for you to survive while we maintain this materialistic paradise." _Finger Tight- "Guilt."

**Chapter 1**

"Would you like a lemon drop my boy?" Headmaster Dumbledore asked, holding out the little metal tin. He was an aging wizard with long silver hair and beard, his lively blue eyes sparkling as he looked down his crooked nose at me,

"Yeah, thanks." I took one of the little yellow candies and popped it in my mouth.

He smiled at me and his eyes sparkled again behind his half-moon glasses. I gave him a lopsided smile of my own. "Your qualifications Mister Spencer-"

"Call me Halo, Headmaster." I said. "I'm still too young to be considered a 'mister' just yet."

Dumbledore smiled at me again. "Very well then Halo. I was just going to say how impressed I am with everything you've accomplished since you graduated from Salem at the top of your class. Then you interned with our ministry before joining the American Federal Bureau of Investigation. You're intelligent enough to do anything, go anywhere you want."

I just shrugged; I'd already heard the little speech from my grandparents anyway. I realized the Headmaster was still speaking so I had to leave my thoughts for the time being.

"-to work at Hogwarts, and why so suddenly?"

"I was getting antsy in the States." I said, omitting a lot of the truth and just giving him the gist. "Europe is a very nice change of scenery, even though I've been here before, I wanted to come back and work somewhere interesting."

"Was the FBI not interesting enough for you?" He asked.

"I don't think interesting is the appropriate word, Headmaster." I muttered.

"Did you pick this time to return because of the sightings of Lord Voldemort?"

I knew he expected me to flinch or to show some sign of fear at the dark wizard's name. Truth be told, it's hard to scare me now days. And anyway, the part of the brain in charge of fear is a little smaller than the tip of a pin. A simple name didn't scare me.

"No Headmaster," I said, feigning innocence; sort of. "It's just like I said, I wanted a change and I wanted it like yesterday. And with all due respect Headmaster, I've spent the last few years chasing Muggle serial killers. Voldemort's just a self-righteous megalomaniac with a bone to pick and an itch to scratch. I've put handcuffs on scarier Muggles. Hell, I've had more deadly pets sleeping at my feet."

_And the most dangerous man I've ever met sleeping in my bed on occasion. _I thought but didn't say, last thing I needed was one of the living paintings in Dumbledore's office telling everyone I was a faggot. That would just fuck things up.

Dumbledore gave me another of his winning smiles, I smiled back. What can I say? Smiles are fucking contagious.

"I greatly admire your courage." He told me.

I shrugged; it was more indifference and my repressed death-wish than anything akin to courage. "All I can say Headmaster is I've been told I have a pair of brass ones."

He smirked at me this time.

….

Dobby the House Elf led me to my room and he chattered nonstop the entire way from Dumbledore's office. He made me think of a squirrel toking up on crack after drinking a gallon of Red Bull. I grinned at the mental image but otherwise ignored him.

Dobby stopped before a large oaken door. "It's this one!" He screeched.

I shouldered my back and switched my briefcase to the other hand as I pushed the door open. It had looked heavy, but it really wasn't. "Thanks Dobby," I dismissed him, closing the door in his face. God, House Elves set my teeth on edge. "Lumos! … Whoa,"

From where I stood at the door I could see a large armoire, possibly that largest bed I've ever seen and the door to the bathroom. There was also another door; I assumed it led to a study or a setting room. I could look at them later, when I had time and wasn't so tired.

I set both my bag and my briefcase down on the bed. The comforter of which was deep green with a silver snake embroidered on it; I peeled back one corner to reveal black cotton sheets. I decided I could definitely get used to this. I just had the bathroom to look at, I needed a shower anyway.

"Lumos," I muttered again. Light from a dozen or so candles filled the room and I suddenly felt like a prince. "Jesus-tap-dancing-Christ!" It was a phrase I normally said when I was pissed off, but I was very far from that emotion at that moment.

The bathroom was made completely of white marble, very beautiful white marble actually. The claw-foot tub was separate from the shower-stall which had a frosted glass door. The toilet was sectioned off in its own little corner and a gold mirror was on one wall. I was fighting the urge to run my fingertips over every surface, just to compare the textures of everything. I eventually gave in, sliding my fingers along the sink and faucet. The marble was cold but not unpleasantly so.

"Hello there my dear," A cheery voice said behind me. I turned, left hand sliding toward my wand while my right reached for my Kimber semi-auto. Not that the gun would do me any good inside the boundaries of Hogwarts but touching it made me feel better. Safer.

"Hello," I said to the painting hanging on the wall that I hadn't noticed before. I must be losing my touch. The painting was of a witch that even I found to be pretty with her bright eyes and brown hair.

"You must be the new assistant the House Elves were gossiping about!" She exclaimed. "I'm-"

I pointed my wand at the painting and cast a silencing charm. Mostly because I didn't care or want to know what her name was and because talking paintings had always creeped my out. I made a mental note to ask a House Elf to remove it, I didn't want it in my room, I just wasn't used to them and I knew I never would be. The painting silenced, I used another charm to temporarily blind it while I showered. I had never been much of an exhibitionist, though I knew a man that would argue that fact.

I stripped away my shirt and jeans, tossing my dark sunglasses onto the pile and stepped into the shower before I'd even turned it on. As soon as I turned the dial, the water hit me ten degrees hotter than my own body temperature. It felt great, perfect, soothing muscles I hadn't even realized were sore and aching. I sighed contentedly, leaning my face into the spray.

I loved long showers, always had, but I only spent fifteen minutes bathing. I got out, towel dried my short and wavy black hair before wrapping the towel around my waist. I fell onto the bed and slept nude curled next to my bag and briefcase.

A loud knocking woke me up. "Just a minute!" I yelled, rolling out of the bed and pulling on some shorts, a pair of faded jean and a moss green shirt. I put on my sunglasses before I opened the door.

Dumbledore stood just to the side of me when I poked my head out the door. "Hiya Headmaster,"

"Good evening Halo," He said. "The Start of Term Feast is in two hours and I thought I'd escort you to the Great Hall and introduce you to the rest of the professors."

"Cool," I said, holding my hand out absently for my wand which flew into my hand instantly, I slipped it up my sleeve then locked my door. "So, who will I be working with?"

"You'll be working with all the professors," He told me as we walked. "However, you'll work mostly with our potion's master, Professor Snape."

The name rang a bell somewhere in the back of my head. "So why him more than anyone else?"

Dumbledore led me throw long and winding halls and I easily kept up with him even though his legs were much longer, I wasn't the one wearing a constricting robe. "Professor Snape could benefit with an assistant."

"What you're not saying Headmaster, is that the Professor is getting on your nerves for whatever reason and having an assistant underfoot and hassling him will be a welcome distraction."

Dumbledore gave a hearty laugh, patting me on the back. "How right you are my boy."

He pushed open two very large doors. And at my very first sight of the Great Hall I stopped dead in my tracks. "Holy shit," I whispered in awe.

The Great Hall was decorated for the arrival of the students, both new and old. The domed ceiling reflected the starry night outside the castle in such a way that for a moment I wondered if there even was a ceiling. Candles floated high above each of the five tables that dominated the very large room. There were tables for each of the four Houses and their banners hung in the air above said tables. The last of the tables was at the front of the room and it was the staff table; where I would be eating from now on. I had rarely seen anything just so freaking cool. I turned to Dumbledore.

"Would you believe I'm actually surprised by what I'm seeing here?" I asked.

The deep and dark voice that answered me was so close to my ear that I nearly jumped out of my shoes. "Just like all the First Years will be I expect…"

"Ah, Severus, there you are." Dumbledore exclaimed. "This is your assistant, Halo Spencer."


	3. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

The Start of Term feast was nothing special. Dumbledore gave a speech about how everyone needed to stick together and work as a group instead of individuals against the impending threat of Lord Voldemort. (Nearly everyone gasped at the name except for me, Snape and Dumbledore.) Everyone sort of treated the mention of the name like the Headmaster had just confessed he liked to suck cock.

I shuddered. _Bad image, very bad image. _I had to make my mind picture something else and fast before I puked what I had thus far managed to eat. But I still couldn't pick the image I wanted, because I wanted a mental break down even less than I wanted to see the love of my life. So I went for my second favorite mental image. _White-blonde hair, wolf's eyes and marble skin._ I sighed around the food already in my mouth. _Naked on my bed, the window open and letting in the summer breeze as we kiss…_

I had to stop before I got turned on. Unlike everyone else, I wasn't wearing a robe or a cloak because I liked to move my legs freely. And the thought of some first year kid seeing the shape of a boner through my jeans was almost as disturbing as my mental image of Dumbledore sucking cock. I shuddered again. Nothing was more disturbing than that.

"Are you cold mister Spencer?" Snape sneered at me.

"No, I accidentally pictured you nude." I shot back and shuddered again for good measure. He left me alone after that.

Well, at least until after the feast when he demanded I follow him to the dungeons. I think he expected me to trail along like a frightened dog, guess he didn't know I was an alpha male too. I'd make sure he figured it out; I was nobody's bitch.

I couldn't exactly keep up with him however, he was taller and he did know where we were going while I really had no clue. Hogwarts was just one big and winding castle for me, full of rooms and corridors that went nowhere and everywhere. I might as well have been blind and wondering around in a maze.

"What kind of wand do you have Spencer?" He asked and suddenly came to a stop in front of me so that I walked right into him. "Watch what you're doing!"

"Don't stop on a dime and I won't walk into you!" I shot back. Shit, he was pissing me off already.

Snape pinched the bridge of his long nose. His hair was longer and straighter than mine, nearly to his shoulders; it was black, contrasting heavily to his sallow skin. But it wasn't the same glossy, vibrant black that my hair was; it was flat and dull with a greased-down look to it.

"Just tell me what kind of wand you use Spencer." He said.

"Twelve inch willow and rosewood with a dragon-heartstring core."

"You have a hybrid wand?" He said to himself. "Those are particularly dangerous and temperamental…"

"Only if the user isn't strong enough to handle it." I muttered.

"Speak up boy!" He snarled at me.

"I said it's only dangerous if put in the hands of some English weakling that can't handle raw magic."

Snape ignored me and shoved open a door I hadn't even noticed was there. He didn't hold it open for me, perhaps hoping it would close on me, but I slipped through before it could. He went to a large desk and sat down; I pulled up a nearby chair and perched on the back of it.

"You look like a woman." He finally said after what seemed like hours of trying to stare each other down.

I gave him one of my grins. "Not the first time I've heard that Snape. Why? You think I'm pretty?" I batted my eyelashes at him.

Snape scowled. "You're attractive, yes."

"I'm not sleeping with you Snape, it wasn't in the contract."

Snape's lips pulled back from his teeth in a snarl. "You're not my type, Spencer." He all but growled at me.

I laughed and it echoed around the room. Snape continued to glare at me and I knew I was pissing him off. It only made me laugh harder until I had to either stop or turn blue.

"When you do work as my assistant," He began. "You will not talk to or cut ingredients for my students. You will do what I tell you, when I tell you. Is that understood?"

I had to resist making a joke about whips, chains and a little leather suit. I had the feeling he'd poison me if I pushed too hard. I scratched at my eye under my sunglasses, saying nothing.

"And take those damn things off before you walk into something." He said. "You look like an owl."

"Hoo, hoo." I teased.

Snape pinched the bridge of his nose again. Joy! I was giving him a headache. "Fine. Do you agree with what I told you?"

"Nope," I said, even though I did, I was really enjoying pissing him off. "But whatever you say, at least I'm getting paid to suffer though you being a man-bitch."

The look he gave me was fucking priceless. His mouth dropped open and then closed again while he tried to think of something to say. "You can't talk to me like that," He finally settled on.

"But I just did. Weren't you paying attention Snape?" I was actually afraid to laugh, not knowing what hex he favored. "Oh shit, you're gonna poison me now aren't you?" I teased; he didn't appreciate the joke.

"Bloody American," He muttered. "Spencer, just be civil in my class and I won't poison you. Deal?"

Reasonable man. "Alright, deal Snape."

"It's Professor Snape."

"Fine," I said. "Then no more of this 'Spencer' shit. Call me Halo."

….

_Professor _Snape was driving me bat-shit; I had to cut things to precisely the right size and remove Boomslang skins in just such a way to be to his liking or he'd make me do it again and then again even when I got it right. It was getting to such a repetitive point that I was seriously considering poisoning him just to save myself some of the trouble.

I almost preferred I was back in the States, maybe back with the FBI in New York. But I wasn't a Fed anymore and I couldn't go back to the States, not with a killer after me. A killer that in the span of four months had already destroyed every piece of my happiness, everything I had strived so hard to attain. I'd already concluded that he would pay with his blood; I was just biding my time.

I was in my room, lying on the bed in only my jeans, the briefcase resting on the spread next to me. The briefcase held the killer's criminal profile, copies of the crime scene photos and a few other things. Beneath the largest file was a very decent supply of marijuana and a Bic lighter. I wasn't a Fed anymore because I had failed my drug test; shit happens I guess.

I lit up one of the joints and smoked it until the edge burned the tips of my fingers and I had to toss the roach out my window. I just relaxed on my bed, having never met an angry pot-smoker in my life, I was feeling pretty good. Eventually I fell asleep. I dreamt of someone with long black hair, but I couldn't remember anything when I woke up.

….

Two weeks into the school year Snape told me he needed to go to Diagon Alley to replace a few of the things his First Years had wasted. "Come here Spencer!" He yelled as I was about to drop a few newt's eyes into bright orange liquid. His voice startled me so much I almost dropped in the knife I'd been using to cut out the eyes. Instead, I cut open the tip of my finger trying not to drop it.

"Fucking hell Professor," I muttered, holding my bleeding finger in my other hand. "You do realize if I had dropped that knife into the caldron that it would have exploded? Hogwarts was almost a big pile of rubble thanks to you!"

Snape opened his mouth like he was going to shoot an insult at me but then he closed it and rubbed his temple a little. It had taken awhile but he'd finally learned not to trade insults with me; I was just too fast at slinging them back. I liked teasing him though, because sometimes he would tease me back or would explode with anger while other times he just ignored me. I never new which reaction I would get and that made it so much more fun.

"I need to go to Diagon Alley this evening," He said. "The Headmaster requested I take you along."

"Cool," I said, genuinely glad. "The man's finally gonna let me leave the castle?"

"…Yes." Snape muttered. "We'll leave in an hour."

"Okay then," I said and finished what I was working with, managing to keep my bleeding hand out of the caldron. Though Snape wouldn't say anything, I knew it was wolf's-bane for Professor Lupin. The man hid his condition well, but I still knew a werewolf when I saw one.

I put the potion into a vial and set it on Snape's desk before I left. I went back to my room, wanting to add my gun and a few of my knives before I left the castle. Just in case.

….

By the time Snape and I had trekked all over Diagon Alley and replaced everything his First Years had trashed, I was feeling beat and thirsty. I had never been to Diagon Alley before since I had gotten my wand and my few wizards' robes in America, so Snape had to deal with me wandering off every few seconds to inspect something I found interesting.

"Merlin, how old are you boy?!" He'd asked when I had wandered too close to a caged imp.

"Twenty-four Snape," I'd answered, rubbing the side of my hand where the imp had bitten me.

I liked Diagon Alley, the mystique and all around enchanted air of the village was heady almost to the point of intoxicating. It was a welcome and bright experience from the dank dungeons of Hogwarts. That being said, I wasn't ready to go back just yet, but I knew Snape wouldn't let me wander around on my own. Fucking hell…

"What do you say I by you a drink?" I asked.

"Fine," Snape grumbled. "I've wasted enough of my night anyway."

It seemed like an odd thing to say, but I figured he was as unready to head back as I was, if not more so. We reached the door to the Three Broomsticks, he started to open the door for us, but I reached past him and pushed it with my forearm. He gave me a look.

"All a voodoo practitioner needs is a few skin cells." I explained and he just shrugged. Voodoo had always been a type of magic I feared, though I greatly respected it, I knew first hand how dangerous a simple voodoo doll was.

I followed Snape to a booth in the back and we sat across from each other. I faced the bar and he faced the kitchen; I got the impression we were both scanning for exits. A young waitress came by and asked for our order; I got whiskey while Snape got a Butter-beer.

"I am paying," I reminded him. "You can get whatever you want."

"I don't drink alcohol." He muttered. "I have papers to grade so hurry up and drink that."

"Uh-huh." I said and took a small sip, not because I was trying to annoy him, I had learned my lesson about gulping down whiskey a few years ago. "So…How long have you been a teacher?"

"Fifteen years Spencer."

"I've asked you a hundred times to call me Halo." I scolded lightly.

Snape made a disapproving sound, taking a sip of his Butter-beer. I sighed and looked around the room, my eyes came to a stop at the bar and a familiar face. At the bar sat the man that had destroyed my life; the killer that was after me.

I didn't panic because that reaction was a useless one. He hadn't seen me yet, if there was a back entrance then Snape and I could slip out unnoticed. But getting Snape to follow me without him making some sort of scene was more trouble than it was worth. I'd have to leave him behind and rendezvous later. No damn it, that would pose another problem if O'Malley injured me and then left me for dead. That really left me only one option.

"Hey Snape," I murmured. "There's this guy at the bar-"

"If you want to pick up a date Spencer, don't drag me into it." He snapped.

And that's the reaction I get for being openly gay. "Fuck you too Professor." I growled out. "I'm not trying to pick up a date. The guy at the bar is a wanted murder in America. I need to leave before he sees me."

Snape gave me a look that lit my blood on fire, and so not in the way I liked.

"Why would I bullshit you about something like that?" I asked him, and looked at the bar the same time the killer spotted me. I turned back to Snape like I hadn't noticed anything out of the ordinary but my heart was pounding in my ears. "Professor…he's seen me…." I could only whisper the words.

The dark-eyed Professor seemed to finally understand the seriousness of the situation. "There's a window in the bathroom, it's small but _you_ should fit just fine." I knew he was commenting on my slight stature but for once I just didn't care. "It leads into the alley; I'll meet up with you there when I can."

I closed my eyes briefly and sighed. "Thank you Snape, I'll explain everything when I can." I stood up and walked at a normal pace to the bathroom. There was a wizard at one of the urinals; he looked up when I came in. I gave a nod and crossed to the window, opened it and hauled myself up onto the ledge.

"Can't pay the tab?" The wizard asked.

"Something like that." I said and propelled my body out the small window. I landed hard on my ass in the alley.

I got to my knees, looking about me for danger. The next thing I knew, a large hand grabbed me by the throat and slammed me into the wall. He was crushing my larynx; I grappled with him, arching in the attempt to reach my gun. I couldn't so I went for one of my knives; still couldn't reach one. Damn it!

O'Malley leaned into me; his lips touched my ear as he spoke. "It's good to see you again, Prince of Flame." He whispered.

I couldn't breathe. O'Malley was bigger than I was, taller, broader and meaner than I could ever hope to be. He'd killed Ryan, the first person I had ever loved, ever been in love with. He'd loved me back, which was so much more than I had deserved. And O'Malley had brutally killed him; I went for his eyes. He dodged and flame erupted from my hands, distracting him. He began to pull away from me and I slammed my forearm down on the hand constricting on my throat. I heard his wrist snap; I was small but I was very strong.

He recoiled and that was when I managed to pull out one of my knives, I sprung forward while aiming for his jugular. He knocked the knife from my hand before backhanding me across the jaw. My head slammed back into the wall, I started to black out and O'Malley pressed up against my chest. The fuzziness abruptly disappeared.

"Oh Halo," He whispered hotly into my ear. "That wasn't very nice my prince," He slammed my head back into the wall a few times, and I hissed in pain, starting to black out again. "What I did to your precious Ryan is nothing compared to what I'm going to do to you-"

"Expelliarmus!"

_Snape's voice,_ I realized vaguely as I slid to the ground. I could breathe again, though it was beyond hard work to fill my lungs. Distantly, I heard Snape tell me to get up and come to him.


	4. Chapter 3

DISCLAIMER- So, here is the promised re-write of "the potion master's assistant." Harry Potter belongs to J.K. Rowling, Halo Spencer, however, is mine. Hope everyone enjoys the new version, and I swear I'll finish this one. And I'm taking liberties with the properties of voodoo, I know very little about it and when I tried researching it, I found too much. I couldn't make heads or tails of the actual facts, so I'm making it up as I go.

**CHAPTER 3**

My head was killing me. I reached up- or thought I did anyway- but my hands never connected with anything. It was probably best, I had the feeling my brain was hanging out of my skull. I groaned in pain, wanting to push my brain back inside me but unable to gather the strength to move.

"Spencer?" Strong hands grabbed my upper arms and hauled me to my feet. When I reached out again, my fingers grazed soft fabric; I squeezed it in my hands.

"Pro…Profes… Snape?" I struggled, starting to black out as I felt his hands probing the back of my head. "Snape?" I asked again.

"Yes Spencer, I'm here." He snapped.

"My head…."

"I know boy, just be quiet." He ordered me.

_Okay,_ I thought. But a second later I realized that if O'Malley woke up and I was still here that I was done for. "Get… me out…" I had to stop to breath. "Get me out of here."

Everything spun, my vision darkened even more and I slid out of Snape's hands. I fainted, lying on hard, cold ground.

….

I didn't know who was supporting my weight, but if it was a friend then I didn't want to vomit all over their shoes. I pushed my hands against the person's broad chest, thankful when they let me roll onto the grass. I puked, the stomach acid searing my already sore throat.

I stayed low when I was done, afraid that if I stood up too fast, I would pass out again. What I couldn't seem to remember was why I'd passed out in the first place. I touched the back of my head gingerly because that seemed to be where the problem was coming from. What the hell had happened?

"Spencer," The dark voice of Snape said. "I'm awaiting an explanation."

_An explanation for what?_ I wondered.

"Spencer-"

"Shut up Snape! I'm trying to remember."

He pulled me to my feet suddenly, so suddenly that I couldn't prepare myself for the vertigo. "Tell me your symptoms so I can treat you." He ordered.

I wished he wouldn't yell. And the thought struck me that I was injured and he probably shouldn't be jerking me around.

"Symptoms Spencer," He demanded. "Now."

"Obviously vomiting, dizziness, blurred vision and minor memory loss…" I said. "What the happened Professor and where the hell are we?"

"I Apparated us to the grounds after you were attacked in Diagon Alley." He said simply. "Do you remember?"

Vague images swam around my brain. Climbing out a very small window; someone was choking me. Sudden swirling pain in my head and my stomach made me push away from Snape.

"I gotta puke again…." I did just that in the grass not too far from where I'd puked a few moments ago. "Oh ouch,"

"Feeling better?" I heard Snape sneer.

Before I even remembered I was packing heat, I had pulled my gun out of its holster and had it pointed in the general direction of his chest. He looked down at me seemingly nonplussed; maybe he didn't know what a gun even was.

"Why didn't you point that at the man that attacked you?"

"Couldn't reach it," I confessed, putting it away. "The holster is on my lower back because a shoulder rig would get in my way, not to mention the stupid things are uncomfortable and too noticeable." I became very dizzy suddenly. "Professor?"

"Yes Spencer?"

"I'm gonna sleep now…"

"Now's not the time for a nap!" I heard and things went dark.

….

When I woke up in my bed, my symptoms were similar to that of a hangover. Pounding head, upset stomach and I was overly cold. I checked myself for injuries, noticing in the process that I was only wearing my boxers. That at least explained why I was cold; sure, I'd been known to sleep nude but usually I would sleep under the covers and not on top. I didn't like the idea that Snape had seen me even half-dressed; it wasn't that I was afraid of being molested by him or something. It was that there had been no reason to remove my clothes. As far as I could tell, my only injuries had been my skull and my throat; nothing else. The fucking prick probably did it just to creep me out.

I stretched carefully, mindful of my aching head and my hand came in contact with a folded paper on my pillow.

"_Spencer, drink the potion on the table before you have breakfast. It will counteract any lasting effects of your concussion. I want an explanation today about the man that attacked you. And did you know you whisper 'Ryan' is your sleep?_

_S. Snape."_

I crushed the paper in my hand, throwing it across the room. "Fucking son of a bitch, cock sucking, cum-guzzling queen!" I shouted. "Shit, you bastard."

….

"Good morning Spencer." Snape said; he wasn't the first person I wanted to see today. Hell, I didn't want to see him at all.

I gave him a one fingered salute. "Sit and spin Professor." I growled, angry because I was still cold. Damn it, I would have to change into something warmer. I took a plate that was piled high with pancakes, bacon and eggs. I downed the orange-juice that was sitting next to the plate first before I attacked the food.

"I doubt that's the proper way- even for an American- to address the person that saved your life." He quipped over the rim of his coffee cup.

"I would've gotten to my gun eventually." I muttered indigently.

"Before or after he crushed your throat?" He sneered, and then pinched the bridge of his nose. "What I'm trying to ask Spencer, is how you're feeling?"

I waved my wand over the glass for more orange-juice. "I didn't know you cared."

"I don't; Dumbledore does."

I sighed. "I'm hungry and fatigued, not to mention pissed off."

Snape drink his coffee, he wasn't eating anything and that wasn't uncommon. "I want my explanation today Spencer. Starting with why you were attacked and just who Ryan is."

"Don't ever say his name." I hissed, the sunglasses perched on my face started to slip and I pushed them back up my nose before my irises were revealed to him. I had been surprised to find them when I got up this morning.

The annoyed look Snape had been giving me softened briefly before he pulled on his mask of cold indifferent passivity that reminded me of someone I knew who wore the same mask. "Very well Spencer." He finally said.

"I'll tell you what I think you need to know after breakfast Snape." I said. "But in my private room; not in your classroom;" I knew he had a free class block so this shouldn't be that inconvenient for him.

"Very well then." He repeated and took a long sip of his coffee.

….

Snape followed me into my room, standing to the side as I closed and locked the door. The only chair I had was piled with my clothes, a bag and some random papers. I gestured for him to sit while I went into the bathroom for a small mirror. I stood beside him a moment later, and even though he was sitting, the top of his head reached just under my collarbone. I was only a few inches over five-feet and he made me feel short even while standing over him. I held the mirror out to him; he arched a brow at me and I guessed he wasn't familiar with the spell.

"Put your hand on the mirror and I'll see everything you saw last night." I told him, shivering slightly. Fucking hell, why was I so damn cold?

"Why not just use a Pensive?" He asked, reaching out to lay his fingers on the reflective glass.

"This is more fun," I confessed a little sheepishly. Truthfully, memory spells that needed the use of a wand were difficult for me. I preferred using wandless magic because it was much easier for me.

What I didn't tell Snape was that I had to touch him to complete the connection to his memories of the other night. Snape was not the type of man I was looking forward to touching, even for the use I intended, but I was so fuzzy about last night's event that I really had no choice.

I placed my hand at the base of his skull. "Ostendo mihi." I whispered.

The small hand mirror took on a light as if lit by flame, the metal turning white with heat under Snape's fingers. Then images of last night started to appear on the surface of the mirror. There wasn't any sound so I had to make due with what I was seeing.

I saw through Snape's eyes as he caught my collapsing form outside the Three Broomsticks, he'd glared down at O'Malley. Then I saw Hogwarts off in the distance as we suddenly appeared on the grounds, saw my body falling to the ground and then fainting yet again after vomiting in the grass. Now I knew I was about to see everything that had happened while I was out cold; the stuff I knew I couldn't get verbally out of Snape.

Snape had physically lifted and carried my body into the castle, taking me to my room and summoning Madame Pomfrey; the medi-witch I'd failed to introduce myself to. I guessed it didn't really matter now. He'd watched as Madame Pomfrey poured a watery potion down my throat; my body twisted and she'd touched my forehead. She said something to Snape and he began to easily undress me.

He pulled off the jeans and shirt I'd been wearing, taking careful measures when he'd pulled the shirt over my head. The two had spoken briefly and then the medi-witch left after ruffling my hair. Snape sat down on the edge of my bed, next to me while I slept. He was looking at different parts of my face, then down my bare chest. His eyes had lingered over my pierced nipple and the phoenix tattoo on my collarbone before following the line of my abs. He glanced once at my pot-leaf boxers before focusing his gaze on the stuff in my room.

My form shifted on the bed in his memory, restlessly pushing back into the pillow and bundled sheets. My mouth opened and I assumed that was when I had spoken Ryan's name. Snape looked at my hand for a few moments before his much larger hand enveloped my own. Then he looked at my face, noticing tears on my cheeks, he'd quickly looked away.

I took my hand from the back of his head, breaking the connection. I was shocked to say the least at the way he'd studied me… And held my hand when I'd called out to Ryan for comfort.

"…Thank you for… y'know Snape." I said awkwardly.

He gave me an absent nod.

"You, uh, you undressed me?" I asked.

He shrugged. "Pomfrey couldn't lift you." He said. "She was afraid of jostling you while you slept, however the potion she gave you was raising your temperature. You had to be cooled down quickly."

"Oh,"

Snape cleared his throat after a moment of uncomfortable silence. "Let's start with the obvious then Spencer." He said. "Why did that man attack you?"

I sighed, running my hand through my scruffy hair. "He's been obsessed with me for about a year." I said. "He's a serial killer, he happened to see me at a club with Ryan and then he decided to target me…He murdered Ryan to get to me."

Snape crossed his arms over his chest. "Ryan was your lover?"

I nodded; sometimes it still hurt to hear that name spoken aloud.

"When was he killed Spencer?"

I swallowed. "Eight months ago on January sixteenth." I said. "We lived together… I came home and there was blood in the snow… I followed it to the backyard…"

I didn't know why I was telling Snape this. The only account I had ever given was a police report and Pend had to sit beside me the entire time. Thankfully like Pend, Snape remained silent.

"O'Malley had…surprised Ryan and then he… he uh, he murdered him there in the snow." My heart was pounding so fast and hard I hear it in my ears. It was a tempo like a tribal drum. "But Ryan wasn't… dead when I found him." I whispered. "O'Malley had just left him there… and I held him while he bled out."

I needed to catch my breath, gather my composure. I slipped my sunglasses off and rubbed my eyes tiredly, trying to ease the pressure. My fingers were hot but the skin of my face was chilled.

"You keep saying O'Malley; is that the killer's name?"

I nodded. "Trenton O'Malley, forty-three years of age. He's American, a Muggle though he dabbles in voodoo."

Snape arched his brow at me as I slipped the sunglasses back on. "He called you the Prince of Flame,"

I gave a nervous laugh, hoping he'd missed the little comment, because I couldn't tell him the truth. "He somehow learned the first charm I ever mastered; Incendio." I told him.

He nodded but I knew he didn't believe me. "I know this is hard Spencer," He said. "But how was Ryan killed; the modus operandi?"

God, how could he ask me something like that?

"Spencer?" He pressed.

"I…I have the crime scene photos and his criminal profile in my briefcase…I'll give you that." I finally said, pointing at the briefcase.

Snape sighed, took the folder and I saw his brows shoot up at my little stash of marijuana. I'd need to buy some more soon. I was smoking so much to make myself sleep peacefully, it was better than a Peace Draught, or maybe it was just because Pend had introduced me to it a couple of years ago.

Snape was at the door when he spoke again. "I'll return this to you when I'm done reading it. And Spencer?"

"Yeah Professor?" I asked. I was freezing; I wanted him to leave so I could take a very, very hot bath. My being cold was not a good sign of my health. Maybe O'Malley had put his little voodoo doll of me in his fridge. God, I hoped not.

"Nice piercing."

I tossed a pillow at the door when it had closed; it made a pleasing thud sound. I should have thrown it while he was still standing there, but I wanted that file back.


	5. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

**Author's Note; Just thought I'd do something different and write in Snape's point of view for a little bit. You'll understand why at the end. **DISCLAIMER- So, here is the promised re-write of "the potion master's assistant." Harry Potter belongs to J.K. Rowling, Halo Spencer, however, is mine. Hope everyone enjoys the new version, and I swear I'll finish this one.

**SNAPE'S P.O.V.**

I had finished grading the few papers I hadn't managed to grade the night before; I was putting off reading the criminal profile Spencer had given me. Though I doubted the young man had suffered any more than I had during my time as a Death Eater, I had an odd sense of apprehension every time I picked up the file. It was a sense of foreboding really, like I had once again gotten myself into something I couldn't handle.

I had pushed too hard with Spencer when I had tried to get him to tell me just _how_ his lover was killed. The death had been eight months ago for Merlin's sake! The young man had a Gryffindoric trait I've always admired and one I wished I possessed. He wore his emotions on his sleeve, and I was sure that were it not for his (infernal!) sunglasses I would be able to read him much better. Thinking on those sunglasses of his, I wondered how often he was stoned and if they were just to hide his dilated pupils? Spencer seemed more responsible than that, I was under the impression I had only found the marijuana because he'd been so shaken by my questions and not by any fault of his own.

I had less than an hour left in my lunch break and I hadn't gone to the Great Hall, I wanted to get through the damn file. I pulled it into my lap and a small bag of full-color Muggle photos fell out. _I might as well start here…_

The first picture was one of Spencer sitting beside the body of the man I knew to be Ryan. Both the snow and Spencer were drenched in blood, his eyes- though tightly shut- were uncovered by his sunglasses. I wasn't surprised to see long and lush eyelashes; I figured he took after his mother in his looks.

The next picture I pulled out was one solely of Ryan. He had been an average sized man in life but in death he resembled a broken doll. He lay on his back, arms spread-eagled while his legs were drawn in close; it looked like some higher being had simply dropped him from heaven, letting him crash to earth like some forgotten toy. But this toy's eyes had been removed and its throat carelessly slashed, looking like a haphazardly made necklace.

I cringed, pulling out another picture. This one again showed Spencer without his sunglasses, but I couldn't see his eyes. He held the sunglasses in his hand while he buried his face against the neck of a man with white-blonde hair and eyes the color of ice.

I held this picture the longest, just studying the pale man shielding Spencer from the camera; it was a body-shot picture and it showed both men down to their feet. The blonde man was slender like Spencer but he seemed like he carried more muscle, he wasn't bulky but he still gave the sense of restrained strength. This man was dangerous, and the picture screamed it. From the pale skin that would put Lucius Malfoy to shame, to the absolutely expressionless face with the icy silver-blue eyes and the black suit that encased a frame taller than my own. It seemed Spencer had the Angel of Death as his protector.

And then there was Spencer himself, small and fragile looking with his tear and blood stained face as he held tightly to the Angel with one arm across his back and fingers spread out to the man's shoulder. He was so small standing next to that man but somehow I felt a type of kinship between them. I could only wonder what had bound together the Angel of Death and the Prince of Flame.

There were other pictures in the plastic bag and I looked at all of them. Each crime scene photo was more gruesome, more heart-wrenching than the one before it. It was no wonder Spencer had needed an escape from the United States.

Eight months was a lot of time for vengeful thoughts to fester and I knew I wanted a piece of O'Malley for hurting Halo the way he had. I wanted to bring the Death Eaters down on the unsuspecting Muggle and hex him into an absolute oblivion. However, the fight, as it were, belonged to Spencer. (Though I would be more than happy to assist.) I knew the young man had my involvement in mind or he would not have given me the file.

I finally read the actual profile, it wasn't large –ten pages or so- but I had to put it aside frequently because of the nausea. The thing I'd done as a Death Eater, I had used magic to do so, Spencer said O'Malley 'dabbled' in Voodoo (though there was no mention of such in the actual file) O'Malley had killed with the use of his own hands. The FBI knew of twelve victims counting Spencer's lover, Ryan Elmasy. The last paper in the file was an autopsy report sheet on Ryan.

**Name: **Elmasy, Ryan Anthony

**Sex: **Male

**DOB:** December 23, 1969

**DOD: **January 16, 1997

**Height: **5 feet 11 inches

**Weight: **184 pounds, 3 ounces

**Hair Color:** Ginger

**Eye Color:** Green-blue

**Ethnicity:** Caucasian

**COD:** Exsanguination

**MOD: **Homicide

I put everything back in its rightful place; my lunch was over and I had a class with second year Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws. I wouldn't see Spencer until my sixth year Gryffindor/ Slytherin class.

….

The day went by fast enough but had slowed so significantly by the time of my Gryffindor/ Slytherin class, that I actually found myself anxious for the moment Spencer would walk through the door. When it finally did open, it was to Potter and Granger with Draco walking behind them, murmuring to Zabini about 'filthy Mud-bloods that didn't know their place.' They took their seats, except for Ganger, who stopped in front of my desk.

"Professor Snape, I was wondering where Mister Spencer is? None of us has seen him in class and I'm-"

"Take your seat Miss Granger." I said. Honestly, I hadn't seen Spencer since after breakfast and I hadn't gone to lunch. It was safe to assume he hadn't either.

"But Professor Snape," Granger insisted. "We overheard a discussion between him and the Headmaster and he was so upset. We're just worried-"

"Hermione, if you're gonna lie to Snape, at least come up with a good one. I know you're capable of it." Spencer interjected smoothly, suddenly standing next to the girl that was a few inches taller than him.

I hadn't even heard the door open; Spencer was a sneaky young man. Of course, I knew it had something to do with the fact that he didn't dress like a normal wizard; though today it seemed like he'd made a minor change in his wardrobe. He wore all black except his shirt which was a stark white; over the shirt he wore what appeared to be a tailored frock-coat. The tail of the coat fell behind him to the back of his thighs and the open front showcased his narrow hips and long legs. How could a man barely average height have such long and graceful legs? He wore his usual wide-lense sunglasses, circular in shape with a wire-frame. I think Muggles called them 'aviators.' The sleeves of both the shirt and coat were pushed up to his forearms and his skin was the golden color of honey. One of his wrists was encircled by a leather band while a silver cord tied around the other wrist multiple times. I hate to admit it, but it was an attractive look for him.

"Halo!" Granger exclaimed, spinning around to look at him. "I shouldn't lie you're right. But… I saw you and Professor Snape on the grounds last night, so I saw you collapse. I thought that something terrible had happened and-"

Spencer held up his hands, looking at me over Granger's shoulder and for a moment we shared the same look. I hadn't told Dumbledore the truth about the man that had attacked him, mostly because at the time I hadn't known the truth myself.

"I get it Hermione," Spencer said. "You were worried about me, thank you, but I'm fine. It was just a bit of a scuffle-"

"Scuffles don't result in a bruise like that, Halo." She countered, gesturing to the hand-shaped bruise on his neck.

Spencer gave an odd little shrug. "Well, no, I lost the scuffle and Professor Snape had to bail my ass outta trouble."

"But-"

"Class is gonna start Hermione, do you really wanna start it with a loss of House Points?" He asked.

Granger looked back at me and I pretended like she didn't exist. My hand rested on O'Malley's criminal profile.

"Come on guys," Spencer pleaded. "Take your seats. Hey Harry, what's up?"

"Hey Halo, nothing much really…" Boy Wonder said.

"Gee sounds like a barrel full of monkeys kiddo."

Both Granger and Potter gave him a smile. Draco and Zabini gave him a look like he'd suddenly sprouted tentacles. Merlin, it was going to be a long class.

….

"I wrote a letter to a friend back home," Spencer said, we sat in my private study a few days later. He was helping me grade yet more papers; he was stretched out on the floor, supporting himself on his elbows while he read. I sat in my favorite leather chair, leaning over my small in table.

"Hmm?"

"He's coming here in his jet; I'm going to pick him up at the airport tomorrow. The Headmaster wants you to come with me."

I sat down a finished paper. "Is it the Angel of Death?"

He laughed. "Yeah, it's Pend."

"Pend?" I asked.

"The blonde guy in one of the photos," He said distantly. "Agent Pendergast, well, Special Agent now… I thought he was an angel too." He gave me another of his warm chuckles.

We didn't talk for another hour, but Spencer started to sing softly under his breath and I leaned closer to hear him.

"_Talk to me softly, there is something in your eyes. Don't hang your head in sorrow and please don't cry. I know how you feel inside I've been there before. Something is changing inside you and don't you know. Don't you cry tonight I still love you baby."_

Spencer had a rather deep voice normally but when he sang the timbre of his voice dropped several notches, making the words sound like the rumble of thunder. I had never heard the song before so that meant it was a Muggle-composed song. It was still one of the best I had ever heard.

_"Don't you cry tonight, don't you cry tonight. There's a heaven above you baby and don't you cry tonight. Give me a whisper, and give me a sign. Give me a kiss before you tell me goodbye."  
_"You have a nice singing voice, Spencer." I said, smirking to myself when red started to creep up his neck.

"Uh, thanks. It's a Muggle song… I hadn't even realized I was singing it, I thought it was just playing in my head."

I nodded, often having a song playing in my head too. "What is it called?"

"Don't Cry, it's sung by Guns 'N' Roses." He said. "My grandmother was in love with the band, she got me hooked on there stuff a few years ago."

It was the first time Spencer had ever mentioned anything about his family. Actually, it was the first time he'd ever talked about anyone but Ryan or Pend. I thought maybe he was ashamed of his family; I knew the feeling.

"Are you a Muggle-born?" I asked.

"I uh, I don't know." He said and the smile he had been wearing started to disappear. "I was adopted when I was an infant; grandmother and her husband took me in, but they're not really related to me."

"You're an orphan?"

"…Yeah, no one knows who my parents were." He said.

I remembered growing up with my abusive father and weak mother, wishing I had just been an orphan. "Tell me about them then. Were they Muggles?"

"Grandpa was but grandmother was a witch."

I set my papers aside so that I could talk to him without distraction. The young man fascinated me for various reasons, each one more ridiculous than the one before it. I liked his sunglasses, I like how his hair curled, how it had a blue-ish tinge under the right light and even that he didn't dress like a proper wizard. I couldn't pass up a chance to sit and talk with him.

"Was she surprised when you discovered your magic? How old were you?" There were just so many things I wanted to ask that I had to force myself to slow down.

"No, grandmother wasn't surprised. I'd always been a weird little kid." He said. "I was seven and there was this bird, a chickadee I think, well it had flown into the window. When it died in my hands I was so angry, angry like I'd never been before. I blamed the window for being in the bird's way; my reasoning was that if the window hadn't been there, then the bird wouldn't have gotten hurt. The bird died in my hands and the window just burst into flames."

I just looked at him, imagining him at seven years old- his hair was probably unmanageable at that time- cupping a baby bird in his hands. I remembered he'd said the first spell he'd mastered had been Incendio and I just let my mind wander after that.

"Have you always worn sunglasses?" I heard myself ask.

He laughed, shaking his head and I didn't know if the action was a yes or a no. I let the question drift away on his pleasant laugh.

"Did you have any siblings?"

"Not that I know of. Did you?" He stood and sat on the arm of my chair. It was a very familiar gesture, a piece of body-langue that said he was comfortable around me.

"No." I said. "How did you meet Ryan?"

The black haired man gave a far away sort of smile, like he'd gone to some other place inside his head. "Ryan was a bartender at this club." He said. "I'd had an argument with my boss at the FBI and I just wanted to wind down a little before I went home. It was a slow night so Ryan and I started talking, we really hit it off. I was looking for a new relationship at the time anyway 'cause Pe- the guy I was seeing was starting to get bored with me… So I gave Ryan my number and we hooked up."

I found that I was smiling slightly, I knew he'd been about to say 'Pend was bored with me' before he'd corrected his sentence. It was another of those issues I decided to ignore. "How long were you together before he was killed?" I asked after a moment of watching him relive memories.

"Three years," Spencer said. "It's lame, I know, but he was the first person I ever fell in love with. And probably the only person I'll ever love."

I felt a sudden coldness in my stomach at his melancholy words. "Are you saying that you won't have any more relationships of that type?"

He shrugged. "My body has its own needs. I'm saying I'll go back to what I had before."

I looked up at him sitting on the arm of my leather chair, looking away from me and into the fireplace. I suddenly reached out and pulled him off balance and into my lap. The urge to touch him had been so sudden and overwhelming that I couldn't ignore it. I had been attracted to him since the first moment I heard him speak my name, even with all his odd quips and jokes. He fell into my lap, facing me. Those sunglasses drooped perilously and I thought I would finally get to see his eyes; no such luck as he quickly repositioned them.

"Snape, what are you-"

"What was it you had before?" I asked quickly, holding him in place with my hands on his sides.

He squirmed for a few seconds before finally giving up and trying to pry my hands loose. I didn't want to let him go now that I had him; I'd been biding my time for a moment to pose this 'offer' to him. I squeezed his sides so hard that he gasped and I wished I had been gentler.

"What was it you had before?" I repeated.

Spencer bared his teeth at me; they looked rather sharp. "A lot of one-night-stands, some week and month long flings." He said, still scrabbling with loosening my hold on him. I had a feeling he might resort to more harmful actions soon; if he saw fit to knee me in the balls, no matter how much I wanted to start some sort of rapport with him, I would hex him severely.

He managed to pry one of my hands loose but I simply grabbed the back of his head and brought his lips to mine. I kissed him slowly at first, just a caress on his lips with my own; Spencer was the one to deepen the kiss. His hand slid to the back of my neck as he pushed his tongue into my mouth, thoroughly tasting me like I was tasting him. I had no idea how often he and Ryan had fucked or if he'd even been with anyone since his lover's death. But the way he was kissing me back led me to believe he was feeling sexually deprived. All I could think was _finally._

Spencer's hair was unbelievably soft, the wavy strands caught in my hand as we kissed. My other hand slipped between us and deftly unbuttoned the white shirt; spreading my fingers over another layer of smooth cotton. He was wearing a second shirt under the white one, damn it. I wanted to touch more of his skin, wanted more of his skin touching me than just his hot hands at the back of my neck. I stopped kissing his mouth and trailed my lips gently down his bruised neck, stopping at the collar of his shirt.

He leaned his head back, letting me kiss his skin, hands on my shoulders and the back of my neck; gently massaging. I stood with him held in my arms and lowered the both of us to the floor; I lay atop him as I pushed up the second shirt. Finally touching his slender chest, my hands stopped and I looked down at him. His head was tossed back in pleasure, hair ruffled artfully; those damn sunglasses still in place. I wanted to see the lust in his eye like I knew it was reflected in my own. His skin was cold, ice cold, like he'd lain in the snow for hours. But his hands were still hot; I knew in that moment that there was more to O'Malley's nickname for him than just a mastered fire charm.

"You're cold," I said between kisses to his neck.

Spencer shifted under me, opening his legs so I could lie more comfortably against him. I felt his hands pulling open my topcoat and touching my chest, moving over my nipples and down to my stomach. I pushed his shirt further up and began kissing his upper chest; trying to warm his cold flesh. One of his hands tangled in my hair as my mouth neared his pierced nipple. I took the metal bar between my teeth and pulled; he arched into me with a gasp. I flicked my tongue against him, hoping to bring a sexual heat to his skin, but still he was cold to the touch.

I took my hand out of his soft hair and moved it to his hips, stroking along his waist. Wanting to touch the bulge I could feel pressing into my leg as I knelt between his thighs. But I refrained, taking my time in touching him. I licked down his front, paying special attention to the tattoo on his collarbone. It was a phoenix rising from the ashes, simple black ink in his skin, barely an inch in size.

Spencer finally voiced his pleasure with a small whimper when I pulled open his leather belt. He lifted off the floor, pushing me upright as he jerked open my shirt and shoved it down my shoulders. My wrists got caught in my still buttoned cuffs and he laughed as he unbuttoned the left cuff first. I continued to kiss his neck but when he finally freed my left arm, he stopped all movement.

"What's wrong?" I asked, still tonguing his neck and lightly caressing his nipples.

Spencer's hand wrapped tightly around my forearm, his other hand shoving me back. "This is what's wrong!" He snapped. "You're a Death Eater! Were you even gonna tell me?! Or were you just gonna fuck me without saying a damn word?!"

I had never seen anything more enchanting in my life than Halo Spencer sitting in front of me with his clothes all undone and very pissed off. His coat and shirt were still on, but opened to reveal his tanned flesh. His belt hanging open and calling attention to his perfectly flat abdomen, the skin there tinged darker because of his anger. Merlin, I wanted to take him there on the floor while looking into his eyes. It sounded like a good plan; I reached up to take off the sunglasses and he roughly smacked my hand away.

"I assumed the Headmaster had told you." I said.

His eyebrows shot up above the rim of the offending spectacles. "Dumbledore knows?"

"Of course he knows," I fisted my hand in his hair and pulled his head back. "Where were we?"

"Well," He said. "I was wondering what a certain Death Eater is doing with his hands all over me?"

I looked up at him. "What?"

He bared his sharp teeth at me. "Get off me Snape." He ordered.

I backed up, watching as he closed his belt and re-buttoned his shirt, smoothing his hands over it to straighten any wrinkles. His head was lowered so that his hair covered the upper half of his face, obscuring his expression. I sat there, my own chest bared to the cold room as I studied him. He was breathing a little deeper than he had been, as if trying to steady himself and I wondered if it was some kind of meditation he practiced.

"Say something," He requested.

"What do you want me to say Spencer?" I asked.

He sighed, finally looking up at me. "I can't believe you didn't tell me you're a Death Eater."

"I thought Dumbledore would have told you about my situation with the Dark Lord." I said, feigning nonchalance. My body was pulsing, I had intended to sleep with Spencer, and I wanted him. Bloody hell, I should have used a concealing charm on my Dark Mark. However, it was difficult to think when all my blood was below my waist.

"So he knows you're a killer?"

My temper flared at his words. "You can't say you've never killed anyone when you were a Federal Agent." I challenged. Really, I was just pissed yet another person I wanted was rejecting me.

"You're right," He said. "I've killed on the job and I'll kill O'Malley the first chance I get." His voice was a growl; his thirst for vengeance made me want him even more.

"I'll be there with you." I promised him; I wanted to see the bastard burn.

Spencer ran his hand through his hair. "I should report you to the police." He muttered.

"You're not a government man anymore Spencer."

"I know." He whispered, putting his head in his hands. I stroked his hair, cupping his chin in my hands; I lifted his face up for another kiss.

"I…can't stay with you tonight." He told me when the kiss ended. "I need to sleep, need to smoke and think some more before I let this go any further."

He kissed my jaw lightly, somehow managing to move his head enough to nip my ear. I leaned comfortably against him. "Do you still need me to go with you tomorrow?"

"Yeah; dress like a Muggle." He said. "I should go."

"Mmhm," I tried to hug him but suddenly his weight left my embrace and I heard my door bang open as Spencer ran.


	6. Chapter 5

**CHAPTER 5**

**Author's Note- So, back to Halo's POV. Also, you'll notice a new character later in the chapter. He belongs to Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child, not me or JK Rowling. Enjoy, his appearance will be brief.**

**DISCLAIMER- So, here is the promised re-write of "the potion master's assistant." Harry Potter belongs to J.K. Rowling, Halo Spencer, however, is mine. Hope everyone enjoys the new version, and I swear I'll finish this one. Also, Pendergast belongs to Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child. You can click on my name to find my other fics, all of which have Pendergast in them. But if you like Halo's character, he and Pendergast are in a fic called "One Day." –Gadget.**

I all but bolted from Snape's room, running full-out down the halls. I needed to feel my blood pump and grow warm for a reason other than arousal; I needed the adrenaline of running to fill my veins. I was colder than I had ever been and it was more than just a physical cold, because I could feel the ice of my skin spreading to my soul. I stopped eventually, leaning against a window frame to catch my breath. God, I'd almost let a Death Eater fuck me, I'd been about to tell him to suck me off when I'd seen the Dark Mark. God help me, I'd almost-

"Er, Halo, are you okay?"

Startled, I looked up at the same time a shimmering piece of the air fell away to reveal Harry Potter's head. "Hiya Harry," I said, still a little out of breath. "Invisibility cloak?"

"Yeah it was my dad's." The boy told me. "Are you okay? I saw you running past…"

"Yeah, yeah I'm fine," I lied. "Just couldn't sleep, thought I'd run around a bit."

"Oh, alright." He muttered. "I'll see you in class Monday."

"Yeah, see you. Try to get some sleep kid." He pulled the cloak over his head and vanished from my sight. I had to buy one of those cloaks; it would undoubtedly come in use when I went after O'Malley.

I looked out the window, my eyes coming to a stop at the full moon in the sky. It calmed me down, my breath coming easier and thoughts that had been muddled by emotion became clear and objective. I could look at Snape's actions more analytically now then I had been able to a few moments before. I could see now that I had put myself in the satiation and that he had (actually) acted accordingly; had I not sat on the arm of his chair then he wouldn't have see it as an advance and, in turn, wouldn't have kissed me.

Though I'll freely admit it had felt nice to be kissed and touched again, I had missed warm contact with others than the person in my dreams. I realized I wanted to go back to Snape, wanted to stay the night. I started to turn and walk to his room before I stopped again. I would be seeing Pend tomorrow, he'd always been one of my favorite lovers and I respected his opinions… Maybe I could talk him into a night together, just one night. That was all I'd need.

….

"You should eat something Spencer," Snape muttered out the side of his mouth.

I pushed the eggs and toast around my plate. "I'm not hungry." I said. It was early on Saturday, four days after O'Malley had attacked me, and I was even colder than I had been. But by this point I was convinced it was just the overall temperature of the castle.

Snape sat his coffee down in front of me.

"Thanks,"

"Did you even get to sleep last night?"

I was tempted to give him some cold and distantly angry answer, what came out was the truth. "A little, I couldn't stop thinking about-"

"I know." He cut me off. "I thought about it too; I should have told you."

"You should have," I agreed. "But retrospect doesn't become you….It was just a misunderstanding, I'll forget about it."

"Then I will too," He said. "Drink the coffee Spencer."

I took a sip, it was far too bitter and I had to pour both milk and sugar into before I could drink any more. I hate bitter black coffee but I loved it when it tasted like bitter-sweet chocolate. Now, when it was more sugar than actual coffee, I could drink it.

"I didn't mean I'd forget what we did Snape," I said, looking over at him. "I just meant I'd forget about the Mark."

He nodded. "That's what I meant as well." He muttered. "Have you given any thought about… the possibility of our being together?"

The coy way in which he asked made me smile. "I want to talk to Pend first before I decide."

Snape nodded again. "Very well. When do you want to leave?"

I grinned over at him. "As soon as you change clothes."

"Would you like to accompany me?"

I chuckled. "No Snape, not this time."

….

Snape changed into a black sweater and slacks before we had left the castle. Now we sat at a private welcoming area within the London airport. He sat beside me in the stiff chairs, having put his arm across my shoulders after nearly thirty minutes of silent stillness. We stayed that way for another half hour before I moved away.

"He'll be here soon." I whispered, sliding across the hard plastic seat.

He'd remained mostly silent up until this point. I guess he wasn't used to -or comfortable- with the Muggle environment. "Tell me about him," He asked.

I found myself remembering every moment I'd ever spent with Pend. Most of it had been spent just having sex, but there had been times when we'd just hanged out and talked. He'd been a meaningless lover, neither of us seeing our relationship as anything other than what it was; the occasional sex. But I knew Pend viewed himself as my protector after Ryan's death while I just saw him as a friend and one of the best lovers I'd ever had.

"Spencer?" Snape asked and I broke away from my thoughts to look back at him. "Where were you just now?"

I leaned against his side but moved back to my own seat before he could slide his arm around me.

"Tell me about Pend." He asked again.

_Where to start?_ I wondered.

"Is he a Muggle or a wizard?"

_Good question!_ "He's not a wizard, but I'm not sure if he's a Muggle."

Snape gave me a look, asking without speaking; "Well, what is he?"

"Pend's what you think about when you picture a Gryffindor." I said. "He's selfless, righteous and the most courageous man I've ever met. He's cunning, cynical and damn good at getting what he wants of people. Slytherin characteristics I believe."

Snape smiled at me, pleased by the comment. He probably thought I somehow meant I was attracted to Slytherin-type men. "Anything else?"

"Uh, he's my best friend."

"Halo, I hold you in the highest regard as well." Pend's mellifluous voice suddenly intoned.

I sprang to my feet, not having heard a door open at all or even the sound of a jet engine. I threw my arms around my friend's neck, holding myself off the ground and against his chest. He let me do this for only a short moment before a tap of his hand at my shoulder was my order to let go. I fell back on my feet, straightening his suit coat and tie, I stepped back to look at him.

His white-blonde hair was combed neatly back from his high forehead. He wore his custom dead-black suit and somber expression, though a slight smile was reflected in his silver-blue eyes. He was glad to see me and I could see him taking in my appearance, lingering disappointedly over my sunglasses.

He shook my hand. "It's a pleasure to see you again Halo." He said.

I smiled up at him, resisting the urge to put my arms around him and slide my tongue into his mouth. But I kept my hands to myself, knowing he wouldn't appreciate it if I suddenly threw myself on him.

"You too Pend," I said, turning back to Snape. He was standing beside the chairs we'd been sitting in moments before and looking at Pend with an expression I recognized as jealousy. I shot him a glare; we weren't a couple and he had no reason to look at Pend with jealousy.

"Agent Pendergast," I said. "This is my boss, the Potion's Master of Hogwarts, Professor Snape."

They sized each other up, like two great cats circling some prey, but neither of them actually moved. The circling was done with their eyes; cold silver and endless black. I moved between them, bringing their attention to me as I sat on the backrest of the chair with my shoes in the seat. Snape sat finally and then did Pend, the both of them still 'circling.'

For a moment before speaking, I simply looked at them; the last two men that interested me sexually. Pend was pale as marble and dressed in the shadows he thought he deserved; the Angel of Death indeed. And Snape… His dark hair lank in the reflective afternoon sun, a shadow of his former self I was sure. They seemed like two sides of the same coin.

I couldn't put this off any longer, and the air was getting tense with the strength of their glares. "O'Malley followed me here Pend."

Of course, the man already knew this; it was the reason he'd come to see me before he attended to 'family business' as he'd called it. I knew it had something to do with his younger brother, but not the details.

"He attacked me outside a bar near Hogwarts." I continued.

"How badly were you injured?" He asked, eyes finally leaving Snape.

"Mild concussion," I answered, pulling down the collar of my shirt and showing him my neck. "He tried to crush my larynx; I broke his wrist."

Pend reached out and traced the fading bruise with the tips of his long ivory fingers. His normally cool hands felt hot to me; I must have felt like a corpse to him because he raised his brows in surprise.

"And…" I hesitated. "I'm constantly cold. I thought it was just the castle but no matter how many shirts or pants or socks I wear, I'm still cold. So cold, Pend, eve you feel warm to me." I was referring to the fact/joke the he was the Ice King, emotionally anyway. Go figure; ice to my flame, shadow to my sun. That was Pend in a nutshell.

"Where is he now?" Pend asked.

I shrugged with a nonchalance I didn't feel; if I knew, Pend wouldn't be here. "I don't know. A Muggle hospital? Some bolt whole maybe?"

Pend inclined his head slightly, his way of saying he'd track down O'Malley while he was 'across the pond'. I looked up at him, ignoring the look Snape was still sending his way.

"I thought I'd have more time before he would find me." I said finally, studying his reaction. There was none. "I covered my tracks Pend, used an alias on the plane, and had a different passport. But he still found me."

"Was it really such a surprise, my dear Halo?" Pend asked.

I could tell Snape hadn't liked the 'my dear Halo' comment, he could get over it. It wasn't a secret that Pend and I had been lovers a few years ago, but I'd never actually told Snape. Pend made people uncomfortable on a visceral level, something they always sensed but could never really give a name to. I've always enjoyed the animal instincts he woke in me, huh, I even enjoyed the nonsexual ones.

"No," I sighed. "It wasn't a surprise I just thought I'd have more time to...get things in order…."

"Obviously, that's not the case. He followed you here; he's after you now as he was in America. Your 'tracks' were not as covered as you thought."

"Why are you being so icy Pend?" I asked. I was used to his distancing himself from me and everyone else, but he'd never been rude or quarrelsome just because he could.

He blinked, his only show of surprise. "I know that an argumentative behavior is what you respond to best." He said. "If I am 'icy' with you then you will pay more attention to what is being said."

Pend had me there; sometimes rough really was the only way to go with me. I remembered times he'd been rough with me physically and the memories were very pleasant. Though at the time, the experiences had been painful, now they filled me with warm memories of a life I'd left behind.

I don't know how, but Snape read my expression and gripped Pend's shoulder as he turned the blonde man to him. I winced, having long since learned that it was never a good idea to touch Pend without his permission.

"Did you beat him when he didn't do as you wished?" Snape demanded.

"I beg your pardon?" Pend asked and slid easily from the Potion Master's grip.

"You heard me!"

"I never did anything he didn't ask me to do beforehand." Pend answered after carefully choosing his words.

_You're splitting hairs Pend._ I thought but kept my silence. Snape didn't need to know about my past with the blonde man; it would only complicate what he was trying to build with me. And the things I'd let Pend do to me while I was caught up in heated passion… Well, I just didn't want the man to know.

Snape suddenly turned to me, ignoring the blonde seated between us. "Is he the reason you wear sunglasses? Did he do something to your eyes?!"

Pend flinched- I knew it had nothing to do with Snape's tone- but everything to do with the reason Diogenes, Pend's brother, was blind in one eye. I opened my mouth to defend him, but he raised his hand to silence me.

"Halo wore sunglasses before I met him." He said, but it still didn't placate my boss.

"Fine, but in some way you've hurt him, I can see it on his face-"

"I enjoyed it Snape." I hissed at him

He ignored me. "I don't trust you Pendergast. You're a dangerous sort of man."

Pend inclined his head slightly. "You've no reason to trust me Professor Snape, but I will say this, however, the activities Halo and I engaged in together are in the past. And at this point in our relationship, I would never allow harm to befall him willingly."

_Aww,_ I thought. "Good to know you care Pend." I quipped.

He smiled at me. "I do try Halo."

I smiled back.

….

"Do I at least get to walk you to the hotel?" I asked. Our little meeting was over with, Pend had grabbed his single small suitcase and we left the airport. Snape was walking behind us at a slower pace, giving us the welcome illusion of privacy.

"I thought that was your intention," He said. "I was delighted to receive your letter-"

"Until you read it, I bet." I said.

He nodded. "Until I learned you were in danger of being murdered, yes. Until that…"

I really didn't want to dwell on the darker things tonight, not with Pend. I had always taken a type of solace in me ability to be a smartass, and I used that ability now, to save myself from the coming emotional pain.

"So, are you dating anybody?"

"Not currently, no." He murmured.

"Anyone trying to get in your pants?"

"Just you Halo," He shot me a mocking glare.

"Touché," I said. "I missed you, y'know."

"I missed you as well," He said, coming to a stop outside the entrance of some generic hotel. I hadn't even noticed we'd made it this far.

"So," I said. "Do I get to get in your pants tonight or were you just leading me along for the hell of it?"

Pend surprised me by actually laughing and then he surprised me further when he put his hands on my shoulders and leaned down to kiss me. I was out of breath when the kiss ended a few moments later. "Has something happened to your eyes Halo?" He asked softly.

I should my head, still breathless from his probing kiss. God, it had been so long since he'd kissed me.

"Let me see them,"

I pulled the sunglasses down just enough to show him the bare minimum of my eyes. He smiled and cupped my cheek, stroking my bottom lip with his thumb.

"I know why you hide them Halo, but I wish you wouldn't." He whispered and then kissed me again. "Give the Professor a chance with you. Even if the happiness is only for moments at a time, you deserve it."

I knew he was speaking from personal experience and my heart went out to him like it had countless times before. "Will you ever take your own advice?" I asked.

He smiled. "Someday I might. For now, do as I say and not as I do."

I hugged him. "I'll be around if you need me."

"How will I contact you?"

"Does your room have a fireplace?" I asked.

Pend blinked. "…Yes."

"Then it's covered. Goodnight Pend."

"Goodnight Halo."

….

"How can you affiliate yourself with that man?!" Snape demanded when we had Apparated back to the grounds.

"I told you already Snape, he's my friend." I said, starting to walk away briskly.

"Some friend he is! You've let him hurt you in the past."

"I didn't let him, I _asked_ him to be rough with me."

Snape spun me around; we had reached the main walkway and were only a few yards from the main entrance. "You asked him to hurt you?"

I wrenched my arm free of his grasp. "It was just a sex game Snape!" I yelled. "I was never in any real danger." Not _exactly_ true, but I'd never even told Ryan the worst of what Pend had done to me and I certainly wasn't about to tell Snape.

"How do you know Spencer? What if you had pushed him too far or pissed him off so much that he-"

"He wouldn't hurt me!" I screamed in his face.

"How do you know?!"

"Because I look like his wife!"

If I'd had a camera at that moment, Snape's expression could have gotten me a lot of money on America's Funniest. But as it was, I didn't carry a camera so I had to commit the image to memory to be drawn on paper later. His brows were up at his hairline, eyes wide and his mouth opening an closing like a fish out of water. Fucking priceless. I turned away from him and started toward the castle again.

"What?" I heard him call before I heard his hurried steps to catch up with me. "What?"

"I look like his wife," I repeated. "I have the same hair color, skin tone and general face structure."

"Does she know her husband is cheating on her with a younger _man_?" He demanded.

"No, she doesn't know Snape," I hissed. "She's dead."

This confession produced another of those moments where I wished I had a camera. Shit, I was going straight to hell when I died, using Pend's pain to shock Snape like this; I had a ticket for the Long Train in my pocket it seemed.

"I didn't know." He said at last.

"No shit Sherlock." This time when I started toward the castle, I actually made it there. But I had only crossed the threshold before he again grabbed my arm.

"Spencer… I'm sorry; I've overacted to…actually to what wasn't even said."

Shit, he was right. I never actually said what Pend had done to me. Hell, I hadn't said anything at all. Snape had just looked at me and guessed everything. I pinched the bridge on my nose with my still cold fingers, sighed. I'd given myself away and I couldn't back out now. I could tell him and risk yet another person rejecting me _or_ I could not tell him and…still risk a rejection. Goddamn it.

I took a deep breath, steadying my will and the images in my head.

"If you're going to tell me, what transpired between the two of you Spencer, perhaps we should go somewhere more private. This castle has ears."


	7. Chapter 6

**CHAPTER 6 **

**DISCLAIMER- So, here is the promised re-write of "the potion master's assistant." Harry Potter belongs to J.K. Rowling, Halo Spencer, however, is mine. Hope everyone enjoys the new version, and I swear I'll finish this one. Also, Pendergast belongs to Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child. You can click on my name to find my other fics, all of which have Pendergast in them. But if you like Halo's character, he and Pendergast are in a fic called "One Day." –Gadget.**

**Author's Note- Snape's POV again, because I had so much fun writing it last time. **

I followed Spencer to his room, passing several terrified First Years and fear placated upperclassmen along the way. It was only a little into the afternoon, sun high in the sky and the students were simply loitering in the corridors. Peeves the poltergeist was causing havoc and the Bloody Baron and Nearly Headless Nick were at their usual bickering.

I gave my attention to none of the normal happenings of Hogwarts; my focus was solely for Spencer and his abnormal behavior. After telling me about Pendergast's wife he'd become silent and withdrawn. He hung his head submissively as he walked, like he was being led to the executioners block. His hands were in the pockets of his faded jeans and the laces of his shoes were coming untied with every shuffling step. And every now and then he'd step on one of the laces and stumble a little before promptly righting himself.

Spencer was lost in his memories, memories that Pendergast had awakened. Damn him. How I had wanted to cast Cruciatus when he's put his hands on Spencer and kissed him! He'd given Spencer up years ago, had let him go to other lovers, and now he was back to take him away. Away from me and I wouldn't let that happen. Spencer was mine and mine alone now.

….

Spencer unlocked his door, (oddly enough with a key rather than magic) and shouldered it open. Even inside the castle, it seemed he was afraid of leaving his skin cells behind to be used in ritual magic. Of course, I was willing to wager that opening doors with his shoulder was probably a habit.

He took off his coat and threw it on the chair, stepped out of his shoes and went to his briefcase, likely looking for his marijuana. I looked away, letting my eyes wander around his room. His clothes littered every surface so that it was hard to tell what was clean and what was waiting to be thrown in the laundry bin. I noticed most his shirts were green, grey or black and all of them were solid colors without designs or stripes. His bed was unmade, the sheets and comforter falling onto the floor in a heap.

Spencer gave light to the joint at the same time he stretched out on his bed, propped against the headboard. I watched him as he smoked, blowing blue-grey smoke-rings into the air. He seemed to grow calmer after the first two or three puffs and I smelt blueberries as the smoke neared me. _Odd,_ I thought.

The younger man waved his hand at me. "Sit over here so I don't have to raise my voice."

I took off my own coat and sat down on the bed next to his crossed ankles; hands in my lap. I could feel him looking at me as he smoked and when the joint was nearly half smoked, he sat it on the nightstand.

"Why does it smell like blueberries?" I asked hoping to ease the tension in the air.

Spencer combed his fingers through his hair. "The rolling papers are flavored," He rasped and licked his lips as if to demonstrate. "I've got strawberry ones if you're interested."

"No, thank you." I told him, I had never done a drug of any kind before and I wasn't going to start now.

He shrugged. "Now that I feel better, guess I ought to tell you the story... When Pend and I met, I was nineteen and fresh to the FBI. My boss gave me this really minor case to study in the field and he made Pend my temporary partner. So here I am in a hotel room with my very hot older partner. He's an alpha male- which is one of my major turn ons- and I get to spend the next three nights in a small room with him while he evaluates my profiling skills. Dream come true right? Would you believe he's the one that made the first move?"

He was grinning slightly and a chuckling sound had crept into his smoke-raspy voice. I realized he enjoyed looking to the past, as painful as I suspected it to be, he still enjoyed looking through his memories. Sometimes I wished I still carried the same naivety.

"I don't remember everything," He continued. "When you smoke as much as I do, you start to forget shit." He laughed and stretched out so suddenly that his foot banged into my hip. "Sorry,"

The small contact had sparked something warm in me and I reached out, laying my hand on his calf. I was surprised to feel the cold of his skin even through the thick denim and his constant coldness worried me.

"Anyway, one thing led to another, but he was _so_ gentle with me. I told him to be forceful, and he took it to mean it was okay to rough me up a bit. At first I didn't like it, I was gonna leave him, but I started to like...being at his mercy. It was a thrill, a game really. What would it take to make him hurt me? What would I have to do to earn his favor again? That sort of thing; that's what it was all about. But he would never have severely hurt me; I looked too much like his wife for him to for him to do that."

"What happened to her?" I asked suddenly. He still hadn't noticed my hand on his leg, maybe he didn't care, or maybe he was too lost in his story to say anything.

"Pend never told me what happened exactly, he was always so vague about the details. I know she was murdered a few months before we met... I think it was just too hard to talk about, Pend always has kept to himself." He finally looked at my hand on him and arched one eyebrow. "You can sit up here if you want."

A moment later I found myself sitting against the headboard beside him, our shoulders touching as much as they could with our height difference. He took a deep breath and reached for the joint again, lighting it with the tip of one finger. Wandless magic was something he was obviously adept in, like each action, each spell was second nature to him and he had no need of a wand. I suspected he carried one as a formality rather than a real necessity; in fact I hadn't seen him use his wand at all the whole time he'd been my assistant. Though I was sure he used his wand in other classes like Transfiguration and Defense Against the Dark Arts.

In all my silent musings, he hadn't said a word. He just sat there beside me smoking his joint; gathering his thoughts to the forefront of his mind.

"I never saw any pictures of her," He said. "Pend hid them all, he told me he couldn't bear to look at them anymore, and because now he had me to look at... He still misses her, still loves her even though he's never said it, I can see how much he cared."

Spencer held the joint out to me and I quickly declined, pushing his hand away. "I don't smoke."

"You were right you know," He said. "Pend would hit me if I didn't do what he wanted me to; it was part of the game. But he never seriously injured me, he'd leave me bruised and sometimes he'd leave me bleeding... But he always took care of me; he never left me alone to heal. He was always there for me, always there. But... he didn't love me; Pend isn't capable of love any more."

Spencer paused for a moment and then he let his head fall to rest on my shoulder. "I almost didn't tell him when Ryan and I hooked up. I was afraid he'd really hurt me...but in the end, he just kissed me and said he'd be there if I ever needed him again. Sometimes Ryan and I would fight and I would go to Pend, I'd stay a few nights with him until I cooled down and we'd play our _game_."

I didn't speak or actively touch him; I just let him lean against me as he told me his story. I had always understood (even if I hadn't ever taken use) of the need to talk about the past. To put everything in a verbal perspective, voicing the innermost thoughts to another person. The way Spencer was speaking as the thoughts came to him was testament to how lonely he had been feeling and (in my mind) how hard it had been to push both me and Pendergast way.

"When Ryan died," He said. "After most everything was in order, I stayed with Pend. I tried to get him to beat me and I tried to make him take me in anger and to just use me. But the most he would do was hold me down when he kissed me, like he couldn't even make himself feel angry and want to be rough. Even when I hit him, he wouldn't hurt me. He didn't understand and I couldn't explain to him that I wanted my emotional pain to be physical too. But he wouldn't hurt me, wouldn't fuck me, all he did was talk to me. Just talk to me while I tried to force him to hurt me."

To my infinite surprise he took off his sunglasses and propped them on his hair, his face already looked more masculine without the black lenses domineering most of his face. The attention was called away from his full lips and delicate cheekbones and focused on the ridges of his eyes and nose. He was feminine in the structure and shape of his body and in the gracefulness of his movements, but his face was androgynous. If I hadn't heard the deep baritone of his voice, I would have though him to be a rather handsome woman than just a pretty young man. His eyes were still closed however.

Spencer pressed himself to my side, putting his arm around my middle. And I put my own arm across his shoulders as he nuzzled his face into me.

"Pend told me how sorry he was that I'd lost my lover, he never called Ryan by his name, just called him my lover." He whispered. "Pend said he was sorry that he'd hurt me every time I asked, and that he was sorry he couldn't hurt me anymore even when I still wanted it. He promised me everything would be okay. He promised me he'd be there when I killed O'Malley. He promised...he promised me... I would see Ryan again. He promised me..."

Spencer dissolved into soft sobs and I could feel his tears as they breached my shirt. I put my other arm around him, pulling him to my chest and his own grip tightened as he climbed into my lap. In that moment he was more a child than the young man I wanted to sleep with. I was at a loss, unable to decide between making him the same promises Pendergast had made, and just sitting silently with him in my embrace. I had distrusted the Angel of Death, I was angry at him for hurting Spencer physically but I hadn't counted on the man's ability to ease Spencer's emotional pain. I hoped I could help ease that particular pain now that the blonde was out of the picture, though, at times I couldn't even help myself. How I was going to succeed in helping Spencer was a complete mystery.

He shifted in my lap, pulling back to look at me, and for the first time, I saw his eyes.

"Sweet Merlin," I whispered.

I had expected his eyes to be blue or brown with normal irises and small, round pupils. What was behind the lenses was not what I had expected, not even in my wildest imaginings. Spencer's eyes were gold, orange and yellow, the different colors flickering about the almond-sliver-shaped pupils, almost like a cat's but still different. For all his bravado and airs of indifference, his eyes reflected infinite sorrow and emptiness. The eyes are the windows to the soul, but the windows in Spencer's eyes had been shattered by the baseball of Ryan Elmasy's death.

Reaching up to cup his face, I let my thumbs pass under his eyes; smoothing the skin and gently touching the long lashes. He kissed my fingers as they neared his lips, I let him and I swore to myself that O'Malley would die a slow and horrible death.


	8. Chapter 7

**CHAPTER 7**

**DISCLAIMER- So, here is the promised re-write of "the potion master's assistant." Harry Potter belongs to J.K. Rowling, Halo Spencer, however, is mine.**

**Author's Note- This is a slash chapter. You were WARNED.**

**Halo's POV.**

_I looked at the young man in front of me, black haired, tanned skin and exotic eyes. It was myself, months ago, after Ryan's death. I was on the outside of the memory looking back at the worst moment of my life._

_He was covered in blood. From his face to his hands and neck, he was drenched in red. So were his clothes and the snow he knelt in, everything was sticky with it. None of the blood had been my own, unfortunately. I could see his breath in the air, little clouds of white-grey misting in front of his face. He was panting, near to hyperventilating at the sight in front of us._

_Pend was there suddenly, pulling him away from the bloody mass in the snow. The blonde jerked him to his feet, leading him toward an ambulance. I lingered behind, looking at the bloody thing in the snow, before I followed Pend and the dream-me._

_Pend had set him down on the back bumper of an ambulance and was cleaning the blood off. "It's your fault." Pend told him, wiping blood from his neck._

_I leaned against the side of the ambulance, just watching as the dream unfolded. _

"_He's dead, Halo and it's your fault. He's never going to hold you again, never going to fuck you again."_

"_I know." My dream-self answered. "It's my fault."_

_I stood up straight, uncrossing my arms, my attention completely on Pend. I had never heard him swear before. His voice was colder than I'd ever heard, he face cast in shadow and I couldn't read his expression. His body langue was poised, tensed like a spring._

_"It's always been your fault," Pend went on. "The death of your birthmother and your father leaving you on the doorstep to perish. Now Ryan's dead and it's your fault."_

_"I know."_

_Pend slapped my dream-self hard in the face. "To think he loved you," He hissed, hitting the dream-self again. "Unthinking selfish brat that you are. He didn't love you, no one ever has."_

_"I know."_

_I stepped forward; this wasn't how it had happened. Pend had never said any of these things to me and I wouldn't settle for it even in my dreams. I reached out to jerk Pend away but my hand passed through him and I woke up._

I woke up, trembling from the nightmare and the cold of the room. I'd forgotten to light a fire, having just dozed off after I'd told Snape all I could before I had broken down. Snape...where was he? I couldn't remember much of last night; pot did that to me nearly every time. I'd smoke, I'd cry until I was exhausted, and then I'd sleep until the morning when I would realize I'd forgotten everything of the night before. That was the reason I smoked in the first place; to forget.

Right, Snape...

I shifted and finally felt his arms around me and his chest pressed to my back. I put my hands over his; moving them slightly lower and he spooned against me more firmly.

"Are you awake, Spencer?" He mumbled sleepily.

"Yeah,"

"Are you comfortable?"

I could feel his breath on the back of my neck, gently stirring my hair with each word. It was... almost like waking up with Ryan again and I settled against him a little more. I was soothed by the familiarity of the situation.

"Spencer?" He asked.

"Yeah, I'm comfortable." I answered.

One of his hands lifted to my chin and turned my head just enough so that we were looking at each other. His long hair was mussed and I found my hand automatically pushing a few strands behind his ear. He caught my hand in his, squeezed it before he brought it to his lips. I closed my eyes, resisting the urge to sigh. It was _too much_ like waking up with Ryan and my heart clenched in my chest.

Snape saw it in my eyes. "Are you alright?"

I shook my head, turning my body so that we faced each other completely. "I had a nightmare but I'm fine now."

His lips thinned but his expression was otherwise blank. "About what?"

"Pend," I said simply.

His lips thinned even more. "I see."

My anger level went up a notch abruptly. "No, you don't Snape."

He frowned at me this time but he just nodded. "Alright then," He said. "I'll let it drop if you will."

"Sure, sorry."

"Forget it," He told me.

"Sure," I said smiling. I loved early morning mind games.

Snape licked his lips, staring at mine. His hands wrapped around me again and slid over my sides to rest at my back, caressing up my spine until he reached the back of my neck. "May I kiss you?" He asked.

I closed my eyes briefly, wishing I was wearing my sunglasses or anything to hide the image of Ryan I was sure was reflected in my eyes. I wanted to tell him no, that the only man I wanted right then was Pend, who at least knew how I liked to be treated. I hated teaching each new lover what I liked, it was the reason they were so far between.

But I said; "Yes." Shit, too late to turn back now.

Snape smiled before he leaned over me, kissing my lips gently and then sliding his tongue into my mouth when I didn't immediately protest. I knew it was Snape who was kissing me, but suddenly I saw Ryan in my head, kissing me instead. It had been so long since I'd engaged in this particular fantasy, usually touching myself while I thought about my dead lover; it often ended with my smoking two joints worth of pot before I could sleep. But now I had Snape to act out this fantasy with. Sweet.

I leaned into him, putting my arms around his neck and letting my tongue slide against his. He pulled back from me when I trailed one hand down his chest, working open the buttons of his shirt. It seemed he didn't want to be apart of my little fantasy. Goddamn it.

"Stop Spencer,"

"I don't want to stop," I murmured against his neck. I was already in bed with the man, what more was there to do but the horizontal mambo?

"Stop, now." He ordered, his voice dripping with menace as he removed my hands.

I stopped reluctantly. "Why?"

Snape propped up on his elbow, looking down at me. "You're thinking of Ryan," He said. "Entertaining a fantasy that I'm your dead lover."

For a moment I stopped breathing. "Legilimency," I whispered.

He nodded, touched my face just under my eyes. "I can... see you easier now without those infernal sunglasses. I'm sorry for the invasion of your privacy, but your thoughts were very apparent." He stroked down my jaw. "I would prefer you were thinking of me if you're going to take this any further."

Goddamn it. What was it with people and their inhibitions?! Let loose and have some fun! So what if I wanted to think about Ryan while I was with someone else? It wouldn't be the first time I'd had sex with B while I was thinking about A, and it wouldn't be the last time either. I thought Snape would be mature enough to understand it, I mean fuck; everyone wants to act out fantasies once in awhile. I got out of the bed, throwing the sheet over him in my need to get away from him.

"Spencer," He began.

"Get out Snape." I growled, entering my bathroom and slamming the door behind me. Fine, he didn't want to play my game, I could play it by myself.

I reached into the shower stall and turned the dial to the hottest setting before I stripped away my shirt and jeans. Stepping out of them and into the shower, I washed my face and my hair, feeling my body begin to react to the images in my head. Images of me and Ryan goofing around in the shower one morning, of his eyes looking into mine while we kissed; I could see him clearly in my mind, holding me to the wall while he fucked me. I shivered pleasantly at the memory, starting to get hard and I groaned in annoyance. I was _not_ in the mood to touch myself, so pissed at Snape and I wasn't even sure why, that I might hurt myself in my anger and frustration. God, I couldn't even call out to him- my own pride prevented it. He was gone anyway-

"Spencer?" I heard the door open.

"I told you to leave!" I yelled at Snape.

Suddenly the shower door was wrenched open and he stood there in only his black trousers. Either he had taken the shirt off or I'd somehow managed to do it earlier. His long hair fell in front of his face in such a way that it hid his expression and the look in his black eyes scared me at the same time it turned me on.

"I'm not leaving you in _that_ condition Spencer." He quipped dryly, making a vague gesture to my very aroused body.

I grabbed the shower door, tried to pull it closed but his hand stopped it. "I'm not playing games with you Snape." I said. "Get the fuck out!"

Snape shoved me back into the shower and stepped into it without removing his pants. I wasn't sure if that was a good sign or not. I wasn't sure if he was going to yell at me, fuck me or beat me and I tensed all over. If sex wasn't _promised_ at the end, I really didn't like to be hit. Snape didn't strike me though; he kissed me. He held me to the wall and shoved his tongue down my throat, hands pulling my hair and angling my head. When my brain got past the _Whoa! WTF?!_ factor, I pushed him off me.

"What the fuck are you doing?!"

He made another grab for me and I wasn't fast enough to pull away again. "I'm playing in to your fantasy." He muttered against my neck. Then he kissed me there, grazing my skin with his teeth as he pushed me solidly against the cool shower wall.

I pushed my hands into his wet hair while he sucked the skin of my neck, his hands having moved from my hair to my waist. He pulled me closer, pushing his hips into mine as he started to use his teeth on me. I began to breathe faster, stroking my fingers through his hair as I looked into the hot spray of water. One of Snape's hands snaked up my chest and toyed with each nipple, alternating between pulling on my piercing and pinching and tweaking the other nipple. His other was hand occasionally stroking down to my thigh, but mostly stayed on my hip.

Snape stepped back from me a little, long hair plastered to his shoulders. "Merlin, it's hot in here."

I nodded, eyeing the steam gathering in the air. He turned away for a moment, manually changing the temp of the water to something much colder. Turning back to me he kissed my lips gently, touching one side of my face. I felt his legs against mine as he stepped up to me again, felt how the wet fabric was clinging to him, and in turn I felt how ready he was for whatever he was going to do to me.

"Alright so far Spencer?" He asked, looking me over. "You know, I take it back; you don't look like a woman at all." Here, his hand wrapped around my prick.

"Severus!"

He chuckled. "Whimper my name all you want...Halo." He said. "And maybe...maybe I'll even moan yours."

Snape kissed my neck again, both hands working my dick and scrotum, pulling and stroking me into a frenzy. For the first time in nearly a week I wasn't cold. The steam had built up in the shower so that it was stifling and hard to breathe. My blood had risen to the surface of my skin and with each kiss and caress of Snape's lips I grew a little warmer. I smirked; no, I wasn't cold at all.

He dropped to his knees and began sucking on my nipples, and without him standing in front of me, the water hit me full in the face. Filling my mouth and forcing me to close my eyes. I tried to twist away from the water, but Snape chose that moment to take his mouth down my stomach. The water nearly drowned me, filling up my mouth as I moaned.

I felt Snape grin and chuckle against my skin. "Are you enjoying this?" He asked, licking along my hipbone.

I grabbed the back of his head and tried to push his mouth nearer the tip of my cock. He only chuckled, resisting me.

"Be patient Halo."

"Not a virtue I have, Sev." I panted, trying to move his head again. "Suck me."

Snape stood suddenly, capturing my lips in a hungry kiss, tongue pressing my own. He pushed his hands into my hair at the base of my skull, holding me expertly against him so that his pants scraped over my over sensitized front. I knew he was aware of how frustrating it was, he _had _to know, _had_ to feel it too. But I didn't get the chance to berate him for it because in the next second, he had dropped back to his knees and taken me into his mouth.

"Ah!" I found that my arms were outstretched, my hands beating a slow cadence on the slick tiled walls. That was how good it felt, so very good that I couldn't even begin to describe what I was feeling. It wasn't like with Ryan, when my heart would swell up with love and joy at each of his gentle touches. Or even like it was when I had sex with Pend; a heady thrill of lust tinged with fear, a rush of maddening adrenaline. This was so much better, so much more different; so nameless.

My eyes caught sight of the Dark Mark on his left forearm, black ink staining his very pale skin, pale skin like Pend's. Maybe that was the attraction; Snape's likeliness to Pend on the polar-opposite scale. A shiver of pleasure travel up my spine and exploded at the base of my skull as I came.

"So good," I moaned, sliding down the wall and into his arms. "So good, Sev."


	9. Chapter 8

**CHAPTER 8**

**DISCLAIMER- So, here is the promised re-write of "the potion master's assistant." Harry Potter belongs to J.K. Rowling, Halo Spencer, however, is mine. Hope everyone enjoys the new version, and I swear I'll finish this one. Also, Pendergast belongs to Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child. You can click on my name to find my other fics, all of which have Pendergast in them. But if you like Halo's character, he and Pendergast are in a fic called "One Day." **

**Author's Note- sorry it took me so long to finish this chapter, I had sooo much homework. Anyway, sorry for the short chapter and I don't know when I'll have another one finish, hopefully in the next week or so. I'm just sort of writing this as I go along. Y'know? I might write faster if I had some reviews, even just telling me you've read it. Please it would make me really, really happy. ****–Gadget**

**Snape's POV**

It was December and Hogwarts was covered by a foot and a half of snow. My relationship with Halo was progressing steadily, though a little slower than I would have liked. After the day I had blown him in the shower, he'd gone to Pendergast very much against my protest. He'd said he just wanted to tell the agent the 'good news.' Halo had come back early that Monday morning with his lower lip cut and several bite marks on his neck atop the ones I had left. When we'd had sex that night, I'd been shocked to see the bites all over his chest and even on his shoulders and the back of his neck.

_"He just wanted to mark me up one last time Sev_." He'd told me. _"Because I'm not his any more, he just wanted to leave me with a good memory. I'm okay... I'm yours now."_

Since then the only time I let him out of my sight was when he was in another class or with Lupin. Like he was now, they had become best friends it seemed in the time Halo had been at Hogwarts. I could see them through Halo's bedroom window which so happened to have a wonderful view of the lake and grounds. Lupin sat in the snow, his side to the castle giving a good look at his profile, his graying brown hair just long enough to touch the collar of his shabby robes. I had a feeling he must be cold, but then again, the full moon was a few weeks away. The cold was the least of his worries.

I could see Halo near the water's edge making several little piles out of the snow. I had no idea what he was up to exactly, it sort of looked like he was making snowmen but then after each pile was made, he'd jump on it and flatten the piles out. _What are you doing Halo?_ I wondered.

I leaned against the windowsill with my hands on my hips and I felt a slow smile appear on my face. Halo had made another, larger pile of snow and was now dancing around it with his hands in the air. I could see Lupin laughing at whatever my lover had said.

My lover... It was a different sort of internal sensation to think those words; an uplifting sort of feeling in my chest. After all I had done as a Death Eater and as a spy I'd never had the time or inclination to find a lover for more than one night. Even when I had been a student I had never had more than a handful of different lovers. It had always been just sex and just people to have sex with. I didn't see Halo like I had seen them, he was one of the few I considered lovers.

I blinked and then Lupin had been pounced upon by Halo the two were rolling about in the snow; it sort of looked like they were tickling each other. I felt a swell of jealousy but it quelled after a moment; I had nothing to worry about from Lupin. The wolf was completely heterosexual and... I _had_ blatantly refused Halo when he'd begged me to play in the snow with him earlier.

Now he and Lupin had stood and separated, Halo was backing away, waving his hands in front of his chest. Lupin was holding a snowball at a ready-to-fire position and Halo was still backing away, a smile on his face. Lupin threw the snowball and Halo did a backward handspring out of the way, landing on the ice. He looked up at Lupin with a terrified expression and the inevitable happened; the ice collapsed and Halo went under the water.

For a moment I thought I'd just imagined it, that Halo had jumped to safety at the last second but I had never been that fortunate. I ran from the room to the entrance hall and out of the castle at top speed. "Merlin, don't let the Giant Squid or the merepeople get him." It was my mantra until I reached Lupin, who was wrapping my lover in his cloak.

"Remus-"

"You're going to be fine, come on, I'm taking you to Madame Pomfrey." Lupin said, he was holding Halo in such a way that it would look like he was walking under his own power.

"Lupin," I wanted to take Halo from him, carry him into the castle but I refrained. "I saw what happened-" I peered at my lover, he was still dripping water. "Why is he still wet?"

"None of the drying or heating charms I tried have worked." He pushed Halo's head beneath the hood of the cloak. "I'm sure it's something to do with the water or some _thing_ in the water that prevents-"

"Take it up with the Headmaster Lupin," I hissed and began pulling them both toward the castle. I flung open the door and a wave warm air greeted us. Halo shivered despite this, grabbing onto the both of us.

"Sev?" He asked and I fought down the routine urge to scold him for the use of my name in public. We'd come to an agreement that we'd only use our first names when we were alone together; it was an attempt to keep our relationship a secret.

"Come on Spencer," I urged him. "Hospital Wing, keep up now."

He stopped, pulling on my arm to make me stop too. "Sev... I need you to get Pend for me." He started to slide to the ground and Lupin and I both moved to catch him. "Please Sev? Promise me."

I pressed my lips together. "I promise Spencer."

"Good." He smiled. "Make sure he keeps the smile for me Remus..." Halo passed out between us and Lupin hoisted him back to standing. This impression of 'Halo-is-walking-under-his-own-power' was a lot less convincing than the one before it.

"Tell me what happened Remus." The Headmaster said. Pomfrey had made us leave the Hospital Wing while she attempted to get Halo's temperature under control. She'd kept saying we were underfoot and that we were giving her trouble and ordered us to leave and report to the Headmaster.

"Halo came to my rooms a few hours ago asking me to play in the snow with him, you know how he is Headmaster, he just gets so excited and playful it's like taking care of a puppy. Anyway he said-" He looked at me and I nodded. "He said that Snape had refused him earlier and that he really didn't want to play on the grounds by himself..."

Dumbledore held up a hand to Lupin for his momentary silence before he turned his attention to me, eyes twinkling as he said; "You have begun dating Halo, correct?"

_Merlin, how did he know this stuff?!_

"Yes Headmaster," I said through clenched teeth, he'd have told McGonagall by morning and then the entire school would know within hours. Nothing would be said to me of course, but Halo would find that a few of his female admires had lost interest rather quickly. "He asked me to contact his American friend, Agent Pendergast-"

Dumbledore held up his hand again. "I know Severus but it's been taken care of. I had Minerva fetch him; he'll be with Halo soon."

"You're bringing him into the castle?" I asked.

"Yes, Lupin, you may continue."

Lupin nodded. "I agreed to go onto the grounds with him, he'd picked a spot near the lake, of course, and he loves the water..."

I looked up, I didn't know Halo loved being near the lake. I knew he loved long showers and falling asleep wherever he happened to drop. I knew his favorite color, food, smell and his favorite spot on the pillow but not his favorite place on the grounds. There was so much I still didn't know about my lover, things that Lupin did know and again I felt that swell of jealousy.

"...Threw a snowball and he jumped out of the way. He landed on the ice- it was closer than we had thought- and he just went through it. I pulled him out as fast as I could; he was uninjured but still cold and shaken up. We encountered Snape on our way back to the castle..."

Dumbledore nodded, looking again to me after Lupin's voice trailed into silence. "Anything to add Severus?"

"No sir," I said truthfully. "Could we-?"

"Yes, Halo should be awake by now. Take a lemon drop before you go..."

Lupin and I walked back toward the Hospital Wing in silence and any student in our way promptly scurried off to somewhere safer. We were at the doors before he spoke.

"How long have you been seeing Halo...romantically?" He asked, refusing to open the door until I answered him.

"Some time in late September."

"That long? Wow, well that's splendid for the both of you. He's like a little brother to me so don't, y'know, hurt him or anything-"

I laughed, thinking about the dangerous man on the other side of this door and what Halo had let him do. Seemed I did know something about him that the man at my side didn't.

"What's so funny Snape?"

"Nothing just thinking that you're not going to like Pendergast." I told him.

I pushed the door open, Madame Pomfrey and McGonagall were near the door but they didn't notice us come in, too caught up in their own conversation.

"-Thought he was a Malfoy when I saw him." McGonagall was saying. "But as it happens he's not from wizarding stock at all."

"He's not?!"

"No, he's just a friend of Mr. Spencer's."

"What a shame, such a handsome man too..."

Lupin sent a smile my way and I returned it on a smaller scale. Halo's bed was behind a curtain and as we neared it I saw Lupin tense up out the corner of my eye. I turned to him surprised, his eyes were narrowed, his hands clenched in tight fists and his hackles were raised.

"Lupin?" I asked, feeling his energy on the air which I shouldn't have been able to do unless he was about to transform. "What is it"?

"I smell another werewolf," He said out the corner of his mouth. "Is this Pendergast-?"

"I don't know." I answered. "Halo said he definitely wasn't a wizard but wasn't sure if he was a Muggle or not."

I pulled back the curtain and there stood Pendergast in his tailored black suit combing back Halo's hair from his face and adjusting the many heavy blankets.

"Afternoon Professor Snape," He said to me. "And you would be Professor Lupin, I assume?" He held out his hand but the wolf made no move to shake it.

"You're a werewolf." Lupin stated matter-of-factly.

To my surprise the agent looked quickly to Halo as if to see if he was still asleep. "Halo...doesn't know." He said at last. "I would prefer to keep it that way."

"He can't be a werewolf," I said. "Or Halo would be too as many times as Pendergast has bitten him."

"He is a werewolf Snape!" Lupin insisted. "I can smell the virus in him but he smells..."

"Different?" Pendergast offered. "Because I am. I was bred a werewolf, the virus has been in my family for generations upon generations and it became a different strain of the lycanthropy virus. I am the product of the particular strain."

Lupin frowned, so did I. "I don't understand."

"Truthfully, I don't either. But I'm only contagious if I breed. Which," He looked over at me quickly. "I can't do with Halo."

"Why haven't you told him? Contagious or not he still deserves to know." Lupin said.

The agent shrugged. "Halo asks a lot of pointless questions, it can be quite irritating."

I knew that to be very true, having lived in the man's room for the past few months. He never stopped asking questions, and it was annoying and irritating to the point were I wanted to strangle the kid. But it was also one of his endearing traits and just ...cute. Yes, I said _cute_.

"I'm sorry I let him fall through the ice." Lupin finally said a little shyly.

"An accident Professor Lupin," The agent dismissed. "Halo attracts them like flies to a dump. I'm sure he'll laugh about it with you when he awakens. Your Madame Pomfrey said he'll be fine but she'd like to keep him for a few days-"

"Because the charms I cast didn't work?"

"Yes and because neither did any of the charms or...potions that she used." Pendergast told us, looking over his shoulder at Halo who still slept unaware that we were in the room.

"Oh damn!" Lupin exclaimed. "I forgot to tell the Headmaster my theory about spells not having an effect when paired with the water of the lake... It was a pleasure to meet Mr. Pendergast, see you later Snape."

The blonde American and I were left alone, or as alone as we could be with Pomfrey and McGonagall still conversing by the doors. He turned his back to me and sat in the chair beside Halo's bed. He took my lover's hand in his own and Halo turned onto his side sleepily; Pendergast gave him a slight smile.

"He speaks very highly of you Professor Snape." He said after a moment of watching Halo sleep.

"Does he?" I asked, sitting down on the cot and taking Halo's other hand, hoping that the agent would get the hint and remove _his _hand from my lover's. No such luck though as it seemed his hand actually tightened.

"Yes, non-stop, in all his letters your name appears almost every sentence. You've made him very happy; I wanted to thank you for that. He's been so... lost and lonely since Ryan died; I really thought they were soul-mates, the way Halo acted..."

I looked at the younger man lying in the bed that was between us, his hair still damp, eyes closed and uncovered by his sunglasses. He looked peaceful and content; he looked, for all intents and purposes, happy. Then I looked at the agent, his face was gaunt, his frame had once given me the impression of a caged animal but now it was almost emaciated and frail. He seemed even paler than he had been and his eyes were far more empty, more hollow. It was like whatever light had been in his eyes had simply gone out, as if someone had pulled the shutters on the window to the agent's soul. I wondered if the lack of Halo's happy-go-lucky presence was wearing him thin. If his absence was taking a toll on him that he didn't show anyone else.

It struck me suddenly how close the both of us had come to losing the young man on two different occasions. The look that Pendergast was giving Halo spoke more than any words even a poet could dream up, those looks were longing and not in the way one longs for completion through sex, but through simple companionship.

My arm stated to tingle then to burn; I clasped my hand over it.

"Make sure Madame Pomfrey knows to keep him warm," Pendergast murmured. "To even in induce a fever if his temperature drops too low. It will be okay Halo, I...I promise."

I wanted to scream at him for making another promise to my lover that we both knew he couldn't keep. I couldn't though, the pain of my Dark Mark searing through and blanketing over my thoughts. I stood, touching my lips quickly to Halo's forehead.

"Professor Snape?" Pendergast asked, looking up at me.

"Stand guard over him, Pendergast." I ordered, turning to leave.

I left the blonde American sitting beside my lover, his silver eyes reflecting unspoken words that I couldn't determine, even though I still knew them in my own mind. Those words were _my_ words too, and Halo would only hear one of us speak them. I didn't know which of us it would be.

Author's note- Pendergast being a werewolf is my creation, part of the plot. In the Preston/Child books, he's human. Or so they say, I have my doubts.


	10. Chapter 9

**DISCLAIMER- So, here is the promised re-write of "the potion master's assistant." Harry Potter belongs to J.K. Rowling, Halo Spencer, however, is mine. Hope everyone enjoys the new version, and I swear I'll finish this one. Also, Pendergast belongs to Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child.**

**Author's Note- This took me a LOT less time than I thought it would. I wrote it pretty fast and it's sort of a filler-chapter but I still like it and I was anxious to start the next one. –Gadget.**

**CHAPTER 9 Halo's POV**

I was dreaming again and this time it wasn't a nightmare, it was very much the opposite. A dreaming slice of the heaven I had lived in for three years. I was dreaming of Ryan, and he was whole and alive and mine again. At least as long as this dream lasted.

_We were sitting on the couch, my head in his lap as I looked up into his green eyes. He wasn't looking at me, he was watching the TV and I could hear it vaguely in the background. I figured the volume must be really low because I couldn't make out anything that was being said._

_I continued to watch him, the way the light reflected off his nearly shorn red-blonde hair and his eyes. I played absently with the fabric of his dark blue hooded-sweater, tugging at the hem before sliding my hand down the arm that was wrapped around me. I could feel the muscles there, lean and sinewy under my hands; I stopped at his hand and laced our fingers together. His hand was much larger than my own, and even though my hand was covering his, it looked so small._

_"I love you." I said._

_"I know." He said it so flippantly but I had never doubted the words when he said them. He could tell me that Mars was made from green radio-active cheese and I would never doubt anything he told me. Love made me naïve, careless, hyper and happy. The sensation was a drug and I couldn't get enough._

_"Say it back," I chided, shaking his hand up and down._

_He looked down at me finally, arching one eyebrow. "I love you too."_

_I stuck my tongue out at him. "Haha, I made you say it!" I teased, Ryan flicked my nose. "Ow!"_

_"Serves you right, you freaking minx." He laughed at me, tickling my sides until I was laughing so hard I couldn't breathe._

_We fell over each other on the couch until I was pinned on my back with him kneeling across my shins, hands moving like lightening over my stomach and sides. I laughed, struggling for breath. Ryan was laughing too, his head thrown back as I tried to stop his hands, trying to pull him flush against me but he was too strong, easily evading my hands._

_"Ryan-please-stop-I-can't-I can't-breathe! Ryan please!" I panted. "Help! Torture! Torture! Ryan!" I started giggling uncontrollably when he finally stopped tickling me, leaning over me with his hands at either side of my head, stroking gently through my hair. _

_"Okalahoma?" He asked. _

_"I- I surrender." I finally managed._

_His eyes hardened playfully. "Say it Halo."_

_Surely he didn't expect me to say 'Okalahoma', a four syllable word, when I could barely breathe. "Love you?"_

_"No..." He grinned down at me. "Say it."_

_Damn it, I couldn't get past his want for my surrender. I knew I would be rewarded but I still didn't want to admit defeat. I tried to buck him off and he just grinned down at me. "Fuck you." I grinned back._

_"That's the plan, my love. Say it."_

_I sighed in exasperation. "Okalahoma." I finally relented. "Happy now Ryan?"_

_He lowered himself until his lips hovered directly over mine, I could feel his breath, smell his scent; some spicy-sweet scent that overloaded my senses and heated me to the boiling point. "Not just yet Halo but soon. Very soon." He kissed me and the love I felt for him melted me. This-Ryan- was heaven._

"Halo, are you awake?"

"Mmmhmm," I mumbled, trying to cover my eyes. Why the fuck was my room so bright? Didn't Sev close the curtains or did he just leave the light on again? God, I was gonna fucking kill him if he left the light on just to piss me off.

"Say something Halo; anything, just let me hear your voice. Please."

I turned on my side, trying to burrow into the covers, found that they were stiffer than mine and I wondered if I'd finally gone to Sev's room to sleep. Had he finally let his last shield down, finally let me closer? I felt hands pushing me flat to my back and I knew they weren't Sev's hands. Then it all came back to me. My snowball fight with Remus, falling into the lake and asking Sev to get Pend for me because if I was about to die I wanted to see him one last time.

I opened my eyes, looking up into the familiar silver irises, white-blonde hair obstructing my view. He was concerned, those silver eyes wide and glassy. His expression softened when I gave him a slight smile and he reached out to touch my face, but he pulled it quickly back when Madame Pomfrey was suddenly at our side.

"Oh dear!" She said and I realized I wasn't wearing my sunglasses to hide my eyes like I always did. She didn't seem to really care, she was just shocked but she pulled up a professional mask before I could even blink. "What big eyes you have..."

Pendergast coughed into his hand and I shot him a look. "All the better to see you with." I completed the nursery-rhyme; I could never escape the jokes and that was one I'd heard thousands of times.

She waved her wand over me several times, assessing my condition while I watched Pend watching her every action with wide eyes. He was utterly fascinated and showing it like he seldom did, excitement apparent in the way his lips parted and the way his brows were raised. I smiled at him.

"You're going to catch flies Pend." I murmured and he finally looked back at me, closing his mouth and schooling his expression back to blankness. "Where are Sev and Remus?" I asked, sitting against the pillow that Madame Pomfrey adjusted behind my head.

"Professor Lupin has gone to your Headmaster." He said, watching as Pomfrey preformed a warming charm on me. "And Snape left, he didn't say where he was going."

"He said his arm was bothering him again," Pomfrey told us. "He'll be back for you soon I'm sure. Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to tell the Headmaster that you're awake. Mr. Pendergast." She reached out to shake his hand and he brought he hand to his lips. She blushed. "So charming..."

"You're such a suck up," I accused, thinking of Sev.

"I learned it from you," He muttered sitting on the bed beside me.

I ignored him. Sev's arm had been hurting... His left arm; the Dark Mark? It had to be, he had been called by the Dark Lord. I closed my eyes, sighing, hoping he would come back to me. Hoping that he wouldn't be discovered as a spy, hoping that snake-bastard let him have just a few more days and then a few days more.

"They told me what happened," Pend began with a sigh. "I wish you would be more aware of your surroundings. Had Professor Lupin not been there-"

"Had Remus not been there, then I wouldn't have been either." I snapped. Why did he always do this? Every time I got hurt, he acted like a mother-hen, treated me like a child. I hated it.

"I'm not trying to coddle you Halo," He said, like he'd heard my thoughts. I hated that too. "I'm just looking out for your wellbeing; we both know that sometimes you get in over your head."

I put my hands over my face. "Damn it Pend, why do you always make me feel like a fucking little kid?"

"I am sincerely not trying to make you feel that way; I just want you to understand how close you came to death today."

I threw the blankets off me, struggled to sit upright and then Pend put his hands on my shoulders and pushed me flat.

"Lay back down Halo." He ordered.

"No, let me up." I shoved him in the chest but he didn't give me the room I needed.

"No. I didn't mean to upset you, but you have to understand the severity of what happened today."

I pushed at him again. "I understand okay!" I screamed at him.

"If you continue to upset my patient, Mr. Pendergast, I'll have you removed!" Pomfrey yelled from outside the curtain.

Pend touched his finger to his lips but gestured for me to keep speaking.

"I understand Pend." I whispered. "I get that I almost died, I get that. Okay? Stop telling me what I already know."

This time when he reached out to me, his hand didn't stop; it slipped through my hair and down to the nape of my neck. I let him pull me against his chest as his other arm slid around my back and mine slid around his waist. I felt tears on my face, I knew they were mine but I didn't know when I had started crying. I felt his hands caressing me gently, soothing me as I really thought about how close I had been to dying. It scared me and Pend knew my thoughts, he always did, and he acted the way he knew I needed. He held me until I calmed down.

I pulled away when I saw Professor McGonagall poke her head past the curtain. The cattish woman took one look at us in the less-than-chaste embrace and stepped quickly away. Great, just fucking great; everyone would know I was a fag by morning. And I spent so much time with Sev...it wouldn't be long before someone (Hermione, I bet) came to the conclusion.

"I want to go to my room now," I told Pend.

"Madame Pomfrey wants you to stay until she's sure you're alright."

"If she wants me to be fine physically, she's got her wish." I said. "If she wants to wait for the emotional scars to heal, I'll be here forever."

"Halo," Pend said lightly, grimacing.

I got out of the bed, realizing for the first time that I was only wearing my boxers. I pulled one of the blankets around my shoulders, thankful that it went all the way to my ankles if I held it right. Pend took his black suit-coat off and wrapped it around my shoulders.

"Come on then," He sighed. "Since you've made up your mind."

We made it to my room without anything interesting happening. It was a Hogsmeade weekend, thankfully, and most of the students were out of the castle.

Pend sat in my chair while I changed into a pair of pajama pants and a loose shirt that went to my thighs. It had been Ryan's favorite shirt, I hadn't been about to give it to his family. There were a lot of things I still owned that had been his, they were either with me here at Hogwarts, or they were at Pend's house in New York. Actually, the only things of his I had brought with me were a few sweaters and a box full of pictures he had taken one summer. I hadn't looked in the box since his death, I couldn't.

"This castle is beautiful," I heard Pend say. "And the paintings and mirrors talk?"

"Yeah," I said. "Not as cool as it sounds though, the talking mirrors are a little creepy."

"I can imagine."

"Yeah," I stretched out face up on my bed. "How long was Sev gone before I woke up?" As much as I had been craving Pend's presence, I wanted Sev's even more right now, knowing that he was with the Dark Lord. He was in danger and even though I knew there was no way I could help him if I was with him, I still wanted to be by his side.

"Forty-five minutes or so, you were out for an hour before that." He told me, coming to sit on the edge of the bed.

It looked like I wasn't the only one craving familiar companionship. But there was still distance between us, we would never hook up sexually again but we'd never loose the spark that had been between us. We would never grow distance and drift apart emotionally; he was my best friend and I wasn't about to let him go.

"That long, huh?" I said.

"Yes... I got quite a fright when Professor McGonagall stepped trough my fireplace. I'm sure Constance will have nightmares tonight."

I snorted a laugh. I hated the girl, his ward. She made my skin crawl and her eyes, I thought my eyes were fucked up; hers scared the shit out of me. She looked nineteen and she was pretty I guess, pale skin and long brunette hair, but there was just something about her that activated my fight or flight instinct. I couldn't be in the same room with her for more than a few minutes, but I was always polite, she was like a daughter to Pend. I could never be mean to anything or anyone he held dear and close to his heart.

"Halo," He scolded, turning to me. "She's a fragile woman, the experience frightened her and then I had to leave her alone without an explanation. I feel quite awful for her."

"She'll have nightmares or she won't Pend, it's not your fault McGonagall didn't know you were a Muggle. And it's not like I could stop her and say 'hey, Professor, my friend may look like Lucius Malfoy but he's not a wizard so knock first!' Seriously Pend."

"Lucius Malfoy?" He questioned.

"Just a big name around here, his son's in a lot of my classes. You look like the both of them."

He shrugged. "I wish I could call Constance or Proctor, at least, but I discovered there are no phones here."

"The magic atmosphere interferes with anything electrical or mechanical." I said. "Like I know for a fact your Les Baer won't work on the grounds, my Kimber didn't. But I've got my knives, so it doesn't matter, and I can use magic for anything long distance."

"This world you live in Halo is very strange."

"Indeed," I mimicked his Deep South accent and he shot me a glare. "I grew up in this world Pend I'm used to it... I don't think I could have handled the other world, the one my father came from."

"The world of the Sidhe," He said, he was the only person that knew the reason behind my nickname; Prince of Flame. "Have you told Snape of your faerie origins?"

I shook my head. "No...I don't how to tell him."

"He won't reject you just because of your bloodlines Halo." Pend told me and I abruptly realized he didn't know Sev was a Death Eater or what that even meant. I couldn't tell him, it was Sev's and the Headmaster's secret.

"It's not that," I said, though I had my own doubts in my self and my reason for keeping my heritage a secret. "I just don't know what to say. 'Sev, my father was a knight of the Sidhe Court, my mom was a witch but I'm still half faerie.' I don't think that covers it Pend, I don't think it's that simple."

"It's not that simple Halo, you're not that simple and nor are your powers. Does he even suspect?"

"No, I think he thinks I'm a pureblood, he knows about grandmother and grandpa and he knows I'm adopted. I told him that much, but I also told him I didn't know who my parents were, that I had no clue."

"You don't have to tell him everything about yourself Halo." Pend said softly. "You're aloud your secrets; I'm sure he has his own."

"I know." I yawned. "Shit, I'm tired. Wake me up when he gets here."

"I'll do that." I felt his weight lift from the bed, probably going to my chair, not wanting to crowd me. I was asleep in moments and this time I didn't dream.


	11. Chapter 1o

**DISCLAIMER- So, here is the promised re-write of "the potion master's assistant." Harry Potter belongs to J.K. Rowling, Halo Spencer, however, is mine. Hope everyone enjoys the new version, and I swear I'll finish this one. Also, Pendergast belongs to Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child.**

**Also: The Sidhe is something I read a while back in Laurell K Hamilton's "A Caress of Twilight", the Sidhe are apart of folklore and I think they're fascinating. Look them up some time if you feel I don't cover it well enough. -Gadget**

**CHAPTER 10 Snape's POV**

Two and a half hours with the Dark Lord and the Cruciatus curse had left me in a painful state of exhaustion. It had been a run of the mill Death Eater meeting until the Dark Lord had mentioned an interest in voodoo and a Muggle I could care less for had stepped from the shadows. It had taken all my willpower not to kill O'Malley when he stepped up beside me and the elder Malfoy. It was the only moment I had been thankful for the white mask covering my face; had O'Malley recognized me and mentioned Halo, I would not have hesitated to kill him.

That action would effectively earn me the Dark Lord's disfavor and he'd likely have some other Death Eater bring him my lover. I wouldn't be able to live with myself if that happened. I had done a lot of things in my time as a Death Eater, all of them were things I wasn't proud of, things I wished I hadn't done. But I knew loosing Halo would destroy me, and that was how much the younger man meant to me. I didn't want to think what Pendergast would do, though I wondered how he would fair against Fenrir Greyback. I wondered which strain of the lycanthropy virus was stronger; my galleons were on Pendergast but Greyback was ruthless and he fought dirty. Pendergast didn't strike me as a killer or a cruel man, he was as Halo had described him; a Gryffindor.

I made my way to the Hospital Wing, anxious to see Halo and tell him that the man he hated with every fiber of his being had been recruited by the most dangerous dark wizard of all time. I feared his reaction, I was fearful of what he might do. Anger was a strong motivator but it also made a person careless at the same time it made them feel invincible. Anger was as dangerous as it was helpful in certain situations.

I opened the Hospital Wing door and saw from my vantage point that Halo's bed was empty and neither he nor Pendergast were in the room. Madame Pomfrey saw me standing there and I could only imagine what she saw in my eyes as she gasped with fright.

"He's gone back to his room, Professor Snape. He's perfectly fine, I assure you or I would not have let him leave. I'm sure Mr. Pendergast will bring him back here if there are any complications..."

I left without saying a word, walking silently to my lover's room.

Halo lay on the bed in a shirt I knew he slept in at least twice a week. It was a shirt that had belonged to his dead lover and it was huge on him, black with grey stripes. It suited his skin tone nicely. I looked around the room, hoping against hope that Pendergast had been taken back to America by the Headmaster or McGonagall; whichever came first.

Today was not my lucky day as he was sitting in a chair next to the bed reading one of Halo's spell books. He looked up as I entered and then we both looked to Halo.

"How is he?" I asked, dropping my cloak on the floor.

"He is well." Pendergast said, closing the book. "Very tired, obviously, but he didn't complain even one bit."

I nodded, never taking my eyes from his sleeping form, still above the bedspread, curled on his side with his face resting on his arms. He looked like a little sprite that had fallen asleep under a flower's petals, long lashes touching his cheeks and his fingers curled inward and half closed to his palm. I wanted nothing more than to cross the room and wrap myself around him, hold him to my chest until he woke up and I could look into his eyes. But I had shown enough weakness for one day and I wasn't about to show any more with Pendergast so close. I had never fully trusted werewolves since my own experience with Lupin in his other form years ago, it didn't matter to me that Pendergast was a different strain, he was still a werewolf. He was still one of the things that raised a feeling of cold fear in my chest.

"Do you think he's hungry?" I asked the agent. I was hungry myself and I had no clue when Halo had eaten as he'd already been awake and begging me to play in the snow before I was even remotely coherent.

"It is very likely." Was all Pendergast said.

I summoned a House Elf; it was just testament to my luck that it was Dobby that answered the summons. I groaned to myself, Merlin I hated House Elves, Dobby especially.

"How can Dobby help Professor?" It squeaked.

"Bring some of Spencer's favorite food. Dismissed."

The House Elf disappeared with a loud pop. It was back a few moments later with a tray full of fruit, mostly pineapple and strawberries. Halo loved fruit and sweetbreads; he wasn't much of a meat-eater, preferring a mostly vegetarian diet. Being a meat-eater myself, it got on my nerves often times when in the Great Hall he would place whatever meat on his plate onto mine.

"What a fascinating little creature." Pendergast said, I tossed him an apple and he began to cut it into slivers with a knife that seemed to appear from nowhere.

"It's a pestilence, that House Elf." I muttered.

I sat down on the bed next to Halo, put my hand on his side and gave him a little shake. He didn't move; I shook him again, whispering his name. He turned onto his opposite side and I heard Pendergast chuckle behind me as I shook Halo again. Usually he was awake a long time before I was, often times already showered and dressed by the time I opened my eyes. He wasn't a morning person exactly, but once he was awake, he couldn't get back to sleep.

"...Stop shaking me Ryan..." He muttered and I stiffened, giving him a firmer shake than I had been. "I mean it...stop..."

"Halo, it's Sev." I told him and he finally opened his gold and orange eyes, looking up at me blearily.

"Sev?" He asked and stretched his back like a cat, looking around the room.

"Dobby brought you some food," I told him. "Wake up and eat."

"I am awake...sorry I called you Ryan again."

Pendergast cleared his throat behind us and Halo sat up to look at him. "Did you sleep well?" He asked.

"Yeah, it was fine, dreamless." He muttered, throwing his legs over the side of the bed he headed toward the bathroom. "I'll be back..."

I sat down where he had been sleeping; the bedspread was almost uncomfortably hot. I heard a snap-click sound and looked up to see Pendergast putting away his knife and setting the core of his apple next to the plate on the little coffee table.

"How often does he call you 'Ryan'?" He asked in a voice so low I almost didn't hear him.

"A few times a week."

"Always when he's waking up?"

"No," I said. "He says it other times too." _Like when we're making love or eating in the Great Hall, once in front of students, once in front of Professor Sprout. _I thought bitterly. Halo couldn't help it, I knew, but the name still got under my skin.

"I don't need to tell you that he still misses Ryan," Pendergast commented dryly and I wondered how many times he had been called by the other name. "However, at least take comfort in knowing you remind Halo of... his lover."

"Talking about me?" Halo asked; sitting down next to me and leaning against my shoulder, I didn't care that Pendergast was watching, I leaned over and kissed him on the mouth. Lingering as long as he was comfortable; neither of us had kissed each other in public, and though kissing in front of Pendergast wasn't exactly kissing in public, it was still something new. I knew that Halo craved the blonde man's approval of what he did and he didn't know the agent had already given his approval of our relationship. That reminded me.

"Lupin knows we're together now." I said against his ear.

"Took him long enough to figure it out." Halo chuckled. "I think McGonagall knows- or suspects- I'm gay. You should have seen the look she gave us when Pend hugged me earlier. If looks could kill, man, I swear..."

I gave Pendergast a look asking why he'd touched my lover. I had never forgiven him for 'marking up' Halo that night months ago, no matter how many times Halo told me it had been completely consensual. He had come back to me bruised and bleeding, sore all over but in a disturbingly good mood.

Pendergast lifted his shoulders in a shrug. "I upset him, Madame Pomfrey was threatening to throw me out-"

"She would too!" Halo said.

"I was only trying to calm him down, Snape."

Halo slid his arm around my waist; I felt his hand gently brush my left forearm, just over the Dark Mark. Asking if I was okay without speaking, a talent of his; I nodded.

"Eat something before I tell you what I learned tonight..."

"Lord Voldemort has O'Malley?" Halo asked in a fearful high-pitched tone.

I nodded; we had taken a few moments to explain the Dark Lord, who wasn't very well-known in America, to Pendergast in an attempt to cut down on the questions. Then I had briefly explained my situation as a Death Eater turned spy/double agent for Dumbledore. I hadn't bothered to mention my connection to the Order of the Phoenix.

"What are Death Eaters?" Pendergast had asked.

"They're the wizard version of the Ku Klux Klan." Halo had muttered disdainfully out the side of his mouth as I began the story of what I'd learned.

"Why does Voldemort want a Muggle in his ranks? Doesn't that sort of defeat his purpose?" Halo asked now, he had moved away from me to sit on the floor between me and the blonde man as if seeking the shield of comfort and safety that we both represented for him.

"The Dark Lord has taken an interest in voodoo...he wants to use it for torture." I said. "He's grown bored of the Cruciatus Curse."

Halo winced. "What else?"

I hesitated to tell him the rest; I didn't want to put anything more on his shoulders. If what I had learned came to pass, then Halo wasn't the only magical person in danger of being murdered by O'Malley. However, I didn't hesitate for long.

"It seems you're not the only person of interest for O'Malley." I said finally, bitterly. "He told the Dark Lord that he was searching for a Sidhe that had wronged him."

Halo's paled visibly, his tanned skin turning a sickly shade of green as the blood drained from his face and neck. "A- a Sidhe?" He stammered.

"Yes, a Sidhe, O'Malley didn't say if this Sidhe was Seelie or Unseelie. That would have greatly narrowed down Dumbledore's search to protect this person..."

I looked up when he didn't offer a comment; Pendergast had his hand on his shoulder and was squeezing slightly.

"Halo?" I asked. "Are you alright?"

He shook his head and looked urgently to the blonde man at his side. The agent nodded and patted his shoulder. "Go on, I'll give you some privacy." He stood and went to Halo's study, closing the door gently behind him.

"What's going on?"

Halo turned his odd eyes on me. "I'm the Sidhe O'Malley is looking for."

I felt my mouth drop open and my eyebrows shoot up in surprise. Halo stood up fluidly, coming over to me and sliding his arms around my neck carefully, as if afraid I'd push him away if he got too close.

"What?" I finally got out after what seemed an eternity.

"I wasn't going to tell you, it's my little secret." He muttered. "Only Pendergast and my grandmother know and ...Ryan did, of course."

"You don't look like a Sidhe." I said and then realized he sort of did with his eyes (that should have been my tip-off, nothing human had eyes like that) and the smoothness of his skin that made him seem ageless. I had thought him a much younger man when I first met him, I never would have know he was already in his mid twenties, his height had made me guess early teens.

"I'm half-Sidhe, from my father, he was Seelie." He told me and now he wasn't looking at me, instead he was casting his gaze somewhere over my head. "I lied about not knowing where I came from and about grandmother not being related to me. All of it. Grandmother is my grandmother; my mom was half Muggle which is why I look even less like a Sidhe, there's too much human blood in my veins. Grandmother adopted me when my mom died in childbirth. She never found my father again, I have his eyes and I can do magic that only faeries can but not a lot. If my mom hadn't been a witch, I wouldn't be able to use my magic. I guess I got lucky... Until O'Malley found out, I don't even know how, he must have... he must have forced Ryan to tell him... that I'm the Prince of Flame."

I didn't know what to say, on one hand I was mad that he'd lied to me, on the other I knew that faeries from the Unseelie court had given most fey a really bad name. The Unseelie were the stuff of darkness, goblins, and the fey that flew (demi-fey) and the Sluagh. They were the real stuff of nightmares. The Seelie though were faeries of light and beauty, heroes of the Old Worlds. That was why he hadn't wanted to tell me, to protect himself.

I couldn't believe it, Halo, my friend and lately my lover, was half Seelie. What had I done to deserve something so very precious? I had no idea, but I wasn't going to loose it now that I knew what I had. I slid my arms around Halo and pulled him into my lap.

"I don't care what you are Halo, that you're Seelie only makes me want you more." I said into his dark hair. "I need to tell Dumbledore; are you going to be alright with just Pendergast for another few hours?"

He nodded. "I thought maybe I'd show him the grounds..." He said and then he kissed me, tasting me thoroughly.

"Do me a favor? Stay away from the lake."

Halo laughed.


	12. Chapter 11

**DISCLAIMER- So, here is the promised re-write of "the potion master's assistant." Harry Potter belongs to J.K. Rowling, Halo Spencer, however, is mine. Hope everyone enjoys the new version, and I swear I'll finish this one. Also, Pendergast belongs to Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child.**

**Also: The Sidhe is something I read a while back in Laurell K Hamilton's "A Caress of Twilight", the Sidhe are apart of folklore and I think they're fascinating. Look them up some time if you feel I don't cover it well enough. -Gadget**

**CHAPTER 11 **

**Halo's POV.**

Snape had thrown me underneath him on the mattress and kissed me senseless before he left. He weight on top of me was his promise for sex later tonight, an unspoken vow of comfort and companionship. I laid there breathless for what felt like forever; proud of myself for telling my darkest secret to the third person I had ever been truly intimate with. Pend came out of my study a few minutes later, a slight smile staining his face and I flipped him off.

"Halo," He scolded.

"Come on, I want out of here."

I took Pend to the edge of the Forbidden Forest, to the clearing in front of the trees so that I could see the sky. We hadn't said a word since I had grabbed his hand and pulled him along behind me, walking past students returning from Hogsmeade and Professors' Sprout and Vector, both of whom looked at Pend oddly. I was pretty sure I heard one of the younger Slytherins ask Draco if his father had cut his hair. The sixth-year had scoffed and pushed the little girl further down the path from him; I bumped Pend with my shoulder and nudged my chin in the blonde boy's direction. Pend nodded his understanding.

Still we didn't say anything; our relationship was full of companionable silence and meaningful stares. Our relationship had always been that way. We sat on a dilapidated stone fence, our shoulders touching as we gazed into the forest. I craved the sound of his voice suddenly, wanted to hear the deep baritone and soft southern drawl. It was his voice I had dreamt about for weeks on end during the bad moments of my life and it had always made me feel safe and wanted.

"I told Sev I'm half-Seelie." I said softly.

Pend nodded. "How did he react?"

I nearly laughed at his so calmly asked question, the laugh turned into a coughing sound and he had to pat my back to clear my airway. "About as expected, shocked, disbelieving, but not...repulsed."

I could tell Pend was beginning to feel smug because he knew he was right about how Sev would take the news of my 'bloodlines'. His expression didn't change, he didn't smirk or puff out his chest or anything like that but I knew he was feeling very satisfied with himself. It was just the kind of person he was. I was wrong, he was right so celebrate, and it was practically his mantra. And it was one of the few things about his personality that annoyed me, well that, and his picky eating habits.

"Bite me Pend."

He shot me a confused look.

"You know what I'm talking about."

He kept the look in place a few seconds more before dropping all expression. "What do you want to do next?"

"About what?" I asked, pushing my fingers though my hair. "There's a lot of 'next' to cover."

Pend blinked as if he had just realized that fact. "About your relationship with the Professor, about O'Malley and this Dark Lord; anything else you can think of my friend."

"I don't know." I said and it was mostly true, I didn't know what my plans were. "My plan for O'Malley is still the same, kill him."

Pend nodded, not agreeing because he didn't believe in killing in cold blood and he wasn't an 'eye for an eye' sort of man. He was just nodding to show I had his attention; he had always supported this decision though; never telling me not to go through with it and never shooting down my plans of attack either. He had never helped in my plans however, but he had always been by my side just offing his overview.

"But the Dark Lord..." I murmured. "God Pend, no one knows what to do about him; the wizarding world pretends he doesn't exist any more, that he's dead. They don't even use his name, they use other things. The Dark Lord, He Who Must Not Be Named, You Know Who... That sort of stuff; I can't even hope to drawl down on him Pend. It's crazy to even think about."

Pend lifted his shoulders in a shrug. "I don't want you to rush into anything, think before you act Halo. That's all I want you to do. Think about your actions because I have the feeling things are about to get...wicked."

"Halo, are you feeling alright?" Pend asked.

We were walking back to the castle, the sun was near to setting and it was starting to get cold. So cold that I was trembling slightly, it had started with my hands shaking and then moved until my arms began to get goose bumps. I had my arms wrapped around my waist now, my hood covering my covering my hair and shielding my eyes from the sun. I still hadn't managed to transfigure a replacement pair of sunglasses, well, not a successful pair. There had been one pair I transfigured from a spare shoe; the lenses had been multicolored and not black like I wanted.

"What?"

"I asked how you're feeling," He repeated. "You've grown pale."

"I'm fine," I said. "Cold, that's why we're going back."

He took off his coat and slung it over my shoulders without a word. I thanked him and kept walking even though my shivering hadn't stopped. And entering the castle didn't diminish the cold, Pend sighed and I knew we had entered the ring of heat at the door but I couldn't feel it.

"Halo, are you sure-"

"Yeah Pend, I'm sure. Come on, I'm tired again."

I held up my left hand as I stood in front of the fireplace in my room. Every Sidhe had two hands of power- the hand that focused all their magical abilities- I had one hand of power. My HOP was fire and I was very skilled in using it, but this time when I held up my hand to aide in warming my room, nothing happened. I tried again but before I could gather my focus I shivered so violently I had to wrap my arms about myself to stay standing. Then I suddenly found Pend at my side, lowering me to my bed.

"What are you doing? Sev will-"

"You nearly just collapsed Halo." He said. "You're not fine and don't even say that you are. Have you felt your skin lately? You were hot this morning but now," He placed my own hand on my cheek and it was cold,

"Shit, you're right. I hadn't even noticed my skin was cold." And I hadn't, I knew I was cold but we had been out on the grounds and it's December. I was supposed to feel a little cold but this was a little much.

"Get in bed Halo, get warm. Snape will light the fire when he gets back since obviously one needs magic to do so..." He trailed off as he began untying my shoelaces and helped me get under the sheets.

I thought about arguing, about trying to use my magic again to prove to him I was fine but then my head touched the pillow and all conscious thought turned off.

I woke up still feeling cold, the blankets of my bed pulled up nearly to the top of my head. My vision was fuzzy, my fingers were numb and my stomach felt very empty. It growled angrily as I lay there, demanding sustenance, demanding anything to calm it down. A shadow crossed in front of my eyes, blocking out the light of the room.

"-alo...hear...okay? Halo...Pendergast...with...need anything?" I was sure it was Sev's voice, very sure in fact, but all I could see was a dark blur hovering in front of my face and hear the muffled words. Muffled by the sheets or the pounding in my skull, I wasn't sure.

I opened my mouth to reply but my tongue seemed to be fused to the roof of my mouth, heavy and numb, telling me I had slept with my mouth open. I sighed and tried to push the covers off me, I was grateful for the warmth but their weight made me feel trapped and suffocated.

"Halo," I heard Pend say. "...can't stabilize...too cold...want us... Hospital Wing?"

His voice sounded very far off, almost like I was hearing him speak from another room and not from right beside me. I licked my lips, gathered breath. "What?"

Sev pulled the blanket away from my head, freeing me just enough to speak clearly. He and Pend both looked concerned their expressions were drawn and wary. Sev touched my forehead, pushing back my hair and wiping away the film of sweat that had broken out on my skin at some point. I realized I was covered in sweat, my neck and chest felt sticky with it as my clothes were pressed closer by the heavy blankets.

"You've been asleep for hours," Pend told me, he looked at Sev. "I know you've told him what you could so I won't spare any of my theories. Your temperature keeps dropping, your skin is icy, and you've stopped breathing twice in the last hour Halo. I believe O'Malley has brought that voodoo doll of his out of its box, I believe he's using it now to harm you remotely."

"I agree with him," Sev offered me some water from a glass, holding my head up so I could sip it more easily. "Magic can't penetrate the Hospital Wing; it has layers upon layers of protection charms. We want to take you there before it's too late."

The thought of O'Malley with his little voodoo doll of me was frightening to say the least. He had promised me a death more painful than the one he gave Ryan and his other victims and while I wondered what he had in store for me, I never wanted to find out. Though as that cold spread through me, I was sure I had an inkling of his plan; he wanted me to freeze to death. Or to slip so deep into that cold that I would never be able to summon my power again. My magic had always been a burden, my bloodlines a sick cosmic joke, but to loose my hand of power would be a fate worse than death.

I shivered as a new wave of cold washed over me, my teeth clenched shut and I twitched all over. I couldn't stop O'Malley from killing me here at Hogwarts; it was too late now and I was too far away.

"Halo, my friend," Pend said. "What do you want to do?"

I was still shivering, my teeth chattering. "Don't...wanna...die...in a...hospital...bed." I managed. "Wanna...be...with...you...both of...you."


	13. Chapter 12

**DISCLAIMER- So, here is the promised re-write of "the potion master's assistant." Harry Potter belongs to J.K. Rowling, Halo Spencer, however, is mine. Hope everyone enjoys the new version, and I swear I'll finish this one. Also, Pendergast belongs to Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child.**

**Also: The Sidhe is something I read a while back in Laurell K Hamilton's "A Caress of Twilight", the Sidhe are apart of folklore and I think they're fascinating. Look them up some time if you feel I don't cover it well enough. -Gadget**

**Chapter 12 Snape's POV**

Pendergast and I lay to either side of Halo, offering the unconscious man the combined warmth of our bodies. I had had my hand on his chest ever since he'd told us he didn't want to die and I was waiting the moment I felt his heart stop. Time went by with the steady beat of his heart under my hand and I dreaded the moment when I wouldn't feel that thud any more. That moment of stillness never came, but with each minute that passed I felt his heart becoming less steady, felt his breath becoming shallower.

At midnight, Halo began shaking so much from the cold that Pendergast and I decided we had no choice but to take him to the Hospital Wing. The charms would protect him; they would prevent the voodoo from reaching him and he wouldn't become any colder. Of course, there was no promise that he would get any warmer either but I wasn't going to let him die. I couldn't loose him, wouldn't loose him to O'Malley and his amateur magic. I wouldn't let the Dark Lord take another person from my life. I didn't care that it might give away my status as a spy; Halo meant more to me than my work for the Order.

Madame Pomfrey was not happy to be woken up at a quarter to one, but she took one look at Halo bundled in Pendergast's arms and immediately quieted her protest. She had the blonde agent lay Halo on a free bed while I hastily explained what had happened.

"You should have brought him sooner!" She scolded, going around Halo's bed to strengthen the protection charms.

I stood silently beside Pendergast; waiting for Dumbledore to arrive, I knew he would have felt the charms flare up. We watched Madame Pomfrey maneuvering around Halo's unconscious form, checking his pulse, his breathing and his temperature every few seconds.

Suddenly the doors swung open and there stood the Headmaster in purple star-speckled robes looking as if he'd been shaken awake by an overzealous House Elf.

"What's happened?" He demanded.

"I should start at the beginning in order to fully explain what is happening to Halo." Pendergast said, he had left my side and was now standing beside Halo's prone form, clutching his hand. "Headmaster, I must ask that what I am about to tell you doesn't change your opinion of Halo or jeopardize his position here at Hogwarts."

Dumbledore looked to me as if to silently say he had a Death Eater and a werewolf on the payroll. "Go ahead Mr. Pendergast and explain what you can, I feel it shall be an interesting story."

The blonde agent nodded. "Halo is half Sidhe, his father was Seelie and his mother was a witch. She died in childbirth and when his father couldn't be located, Halo was adopted by his grandparents. He came into his Sidhe hand of power at seven and he only got stronger from there. About sixteen months ago, a man named Trenton O'Malley saw Halo at a club with his lover Ryan. The FBI knows O'Malley is a serial killer; the FBI doesn't know he practices voodoo on the victims he deems...special. He took an interest in Halo and began to stalk him. At some point he discovered Halo's parentage and it only strengthened his ... special obsession."

The agent paused to let what he told us sink in; he was still holding Halo's hand, stroking his thumb over the skin repeatedly. "O'Malley murdered Ryan in January to shake up Halo. He came to Europe to escape this madman, and being what he is, he assumed he would be safe here...He once told me that you, Dumbledore, were the greatest wizard that had ever lived. That's why he came to Hogwarts. We thought O'Malley wouldn't be able to track him, but obviously, that's not how things worked out."

Dumbledore listened silently then walked to the agent and laid his hand on the taller man's shoulder. "I had a feeling the boy wasn't a typical wizard but I never would have imagined the truth. But what is happening to him now?"

"I told you the Dark Lord has taken his own interest in voodoo," I said. "I can only speculate how they came together, but O'Malley must have heard the patrons of the Three Broomsticks talking about the Dark Lord the night he attacked Halo."

"It's seems the most plausible," The Headmaster replied.

"Halo's hand of power is flame," Pendergast said after a few moments of thinking silence. "O'Malley knows this and I believe he's trying to... freeze Halo, to destroy his magic before he kills him. He doesn't care if Halo dies in the process; I believe your Lord Voldemort only wants results."

"He's letting that Muggle play around you mean?" Madame Pomfrey asked.

Pendergast nodded curtly. "Yes, I believe that's exactly what he's doing."

Days went by with no change in Halo's condition. His temperature didn't change, he didn't wake up and he didn't so much as flutter his eyelids when someone spoke to him. As it turned out, a lot of people came and spoke to Halo while Pendergast (who rarely left his side) would stand against the window with an invisibility cloak draped over his frame to hide him from the students. Oddly, it was mostly Slytherin students that came to see my lover. The Golden Trio were the only Gryffindors that came to see him; among a number of the girls from every House. ... Lupin came and talked to him often, which was when Pendergast removed the cloak, the two werewolves would sit silently in each other's company. Pendergast told me once that it was nice to be near another wolf even if Lupin's virus-strain was so very different from his own.

I could only see Halo at night, I hated it but I knew it had to remain that way if we wanted our relationship to remain a secret. Though he was unconscious, and it looked like he might stay that way for some time, I still wanted to remain discrete because I knew he would value that action when he woke up. When he woke up... I kept telling myself that... When he woke up because I knew he would wake up. He simply had to.

It was nearing 10pm, well after dinner and curfew and I knew I could see Halo undisturbed. Pendergast often left me alone with him, sometimes taking a small walk around the castle to give me privacy. The last several days had been heart wrenching, my every thought revolving around Halo and his condition. Every waking moment was spent with my wondering how I would torture O'Malley and the Dark Lord, how I would help Halo. How he would wake up soon, how he would just open his eyes and smirk up at me, asking what all the fuss was about. He would be okay, he would be there when we killed O'Malley and then things would be...better.

I pushed open the door and heard a young, feminine voice.

"The other girls say you never move and everyone's afraid that you won't come back. That you'll just...waste away." The familiar voice was saying. "I know I've never been all that nice to you, even when you were nice to me, but that doesn't mean I don't feel for you. You're the most beautiful wizard I've ever seen, and the most interesting person I've ever met. I love your sunglasses and your hair and your lips and your smile and just everything about you. I don't know if you can hear me or not, but I'm still going to say it... I love you..."

I cleared my throat softly; coming nearer to Halo's sectioned off bed. "Miss Parkinson," I said. "It's past curfew."

The sixth year girl whipped around at the sound of my voice. Her cheeks were slick with tears and I saw that her hand lay next to Halo's on the bed, but she wasn't touching him. She obviously didn't know about his sexual preference or she wouldn't have just spilt her heart out to his unconscious form. She probably thought he was too... sacred to tell in person while he was awake and able to respond; able to shoot her hopes down as it were. She was taking advantage of the situation, a very Slytherin trait and I would have been proud had it not been my lover she was taking liberties with.

"Professor!" She exclaimed, standing up quickly. "I was... I was just coming to talk to Mister Spencer..."

I waved my hand dismissively. "I heard everything, Miss Parkinson." I told her in my lowest, most menacing voice. "I must inform you that what I just heard could put you in a very dangerous position."

"Nothing's ever happened between us!" She yelled at me then turned back to Halo, she lowered her voice to just above an angry whisper when she spoke next. "He doesn't even know I exist!"

For some reason I felt the need to spare her feelings, I knew how she felt. Unrequited love was a painful thing, it had often damaged people beyond repair emotionally and I had been on the receiving end more than once. I had gotten lucky with Halo in more than one way. But Parkinson was still young, she didn't yet know how good things could feel and could be when that love was returned. Halo, even if straight, was the wrong person for her, and not just for the fact that he was several years older, but that I knew her type of personality wasn't something he was attracted to. Not that Draco was any better for her, but Halo was mine.

"Miss Parkinson," I caught her arm as she tried to speed past me. "I'll keep this between us and the walls. Mister Spencer doesn't notice you in the way you want because..." I hesitated. "You're not the gender that interests him."

The dark haired girl looked up at me, shocked. "You mean he's gay?" She finally asked.

I nodded once slowly. "Keep this between us, or you'll be cleaning out my cauldrons every night until you graduate." I warned and let her go.

"Cross my heart Professor." She swore and was gone back to the Slytherin common room.

"Halo won't be happy about that," I heard Pendergast mutter.

"Merlin, I know," I agreed with the agent. "It almost makes me hope he can't hear us but at the same time-"

"You hope he can."

"Yes,"

Pendergast pulled the cloak from his head, letting it bunch around his shoulders. He stood near the window like I had known he would be; the shadow of his head accentuated by starlight. He looked inhuman, ethereal almost in the half of his body that was revealed to me.

"She's not the only one that's come here to confess an infatuation." The agent said. "There have been seven so far, a few young men as well. You may have your hands full when he wakes up."

I arched my eyebrows at him, sitting down on the mattress next to Halo's head, settling my arm around his shoulders. "Did you catch any names?"

"The Golden Trio's Hermione," He said. "She only confessed a deep admiration for his intelligence; I believe she sees in him a kindred spirit. The girl that was here before you arrived. I didn't catch any other names I'm afraid."

I smoothed Halo's hair back from his face, gently running my fingers along his scalp in a massaging motion. He looked peaceful, more like he was sleeping than in a coma. I leaned down and touched my lips lightly to his cheek; he was still cold under my hands. Always so cold, and we were unable to warm him.

Madame Pomfrey and the Headmaster had tried a number of warming, heating and fire charms to bring Halo's body temperature back to normal. Nothing had worked, however, nothing. The only option we really had was to find the voodoo doll, find O'Malley and somehow break the connection since we couldn't even remove Halo from the Hospital Wing to take him to Saint Mungo's. If he was moved from the HW for even a small moment, his vitals would drop and there would be nothing we could do; he would die.

"Do you want to be alone with him?" The agent asked.

"Yes," I nodded. "Please, just...an hour this time."

"Very well," Pendergast pulled the cloak over his head, vanishing and a few seconds later I heard the doors open then close.

Alone at last. I continued to push my fingers through his hair, looking down at his face. Those exotic eyes closed and the long dark lashes resting on his cheeks. I leaned still closer, almost lying down on the bed next to him to put my mouth next to his ear. Whispering in case someone should overhear me.

"I miss you lover," I whispered to him, the shell of his ear cold against my bottom lip. "I think about you every night, wishing I were holding you against me. Kissing you, making love to you... Wishing we had acted sooner to get you here, to protect you within these walls. If wishes were horses, my love... I love you."

I had never said those words before, not to my family, not to a pet and never to one of my countless lovers. But Halo was special, very special to me. And I did love him; more than anything. For the next hour, I just sat there, smoothing back his hair, touching my fingers to his cheek and whispering soft nothings in his ear.

Pendergast tapped my shoulder while still hidden under the invisibility cloak. "Do you want more time with him?" Came his murmured whisper from the empty air.

I shook my head, lips still touching his ear. "I love you Halo Edwin Spencer," I whispered. When I kissed him goodbye, his lips were warm under my own; it was an improvement.


	14. Chapter 13

**DISCLAIMER- So, here is the promised re-write of "the potion master's assistant." Harry Potter belongs to J.K. Rowling, Halo Spencer, however, is mine. Hope everyone enjoys the new version, and I swear I'll finish this one. Also, Pendergast belongs to Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child.**

**Also: The Sidhe is something I read a while back in Laurell K Hamilton's "A Caress of Twilight", the Sidhe are apart of folklore and I think they're fascinating. Look them up some time if you feel I don't cover it well enough. -Gadget**

**CHAPTER 13 Halo's POV.**

I had been drifting in and out of dreams; sometimes they were nightmares but most of the time, my dreams were memories of Ryan and my childhood. I could hear everything but I couldn't tell anyone, couldn't even move my lips when Sev kissed me goodbye every night.

I heard Hermione come visit me in the early morning, felt her pat my hand gently as she begged me to get better soon so we "could have more talks about Muggle movies." Had I been able to, I would have smiled at her, told her of course and maybe asked her what she was reading so I could read it too. We had that kind of friendship.

I didn't remember the rest of the day, once I thought I heard Remus's voice, but I had only just been waking up and I wasn't sure. Then, when I had started to drift back into another dream, I heard the door gently open and felt a small hand slid down my arm.

"Mister Spencer?" I knew Pansy Parkinson's voice when I heard it; it was a little whiny and childish, not quite as developed as her mind and body. "Can you hear me? I just wanted to come see you before I went to the common room. I just wanted you to, like, y'know, to know someone is talking to you."

She started to try and turn my hand over, to clasp it in her own, but gave up when she realized how unresponsive my limbs were. Sev and Pend always had to use a little bit of force to move me when they held my hand and Pansy wasn't near as strong as they were.

"The other girls say you never move and everyone's afraid that you won't come back. That you'll just...waste away. I know I've never been all that nice to you, even when you were nice to me, but that doesn't mean I don't feel for you. You're the most beautiful wizard I've ever seen, and the most interesting person I've ever met. I love your sunglasses and your hair and your lips and your smile and just everything about you. I don't know if you can hear me or not, but I'm still going to say it... I love you..."

Inwardly, I winced, outwardly there was no change. There never was, but that's not the point. She was still a child, too young to fully believe she loved me, as much as it made my skin feel a little funky, I knew she was only feeling a strong- well, a strong lust for me I guess. She was still young enough to get those feeling tangled with the hormones her body was producing. And I wasn't exactly the best choice for a teenaged girl to fall for. God, I couldn't even think of a time when I had shown her any more favor than any of the other students I helped. I was nice to people if they were nice to me, the only exception being Sev. I was nice and affectionate even if he was in one of his bastardly moods.

"It's past curfew." I suddenly heard Sev say and I felt the motion of the air as Pansy turned to him.

"Professor!" She yelped. "I was... I was just coming to talk to Mister Spencer..."

If I had been able to, I would have snickered at her attempt to lie to my boyfriend.

"I heard everything, Miss Parkinson." He told her in a low tone. "I must inform you that what I just heard could put you in a very dangerous position."

_Oh Sev,_ I thought, _don't do that to her. She's just a kid, she doesn't really even understand what she said to me and it doesn't matter anyway. If I wake up, I'll just pretend I didn't hear anything. Don't punish her Sev, please._

"Nothing's ever happened between us!" She raised her voice and then dropped it low so I had to strain to hear every word. "He doesn't even know I exist!"

_Not true!_ I wanted to scream. _Pansy I know you exist and I know you've liked me for a long time but I... I'm taken! And you're not my type, you're female. God I wish I could speak!_

"Miss Parkinson, I'll keep this between us and the walls. Mister Spencer doesn't notice you in the way you want because...You're not the gender that interests him." Was my lover's soft, gentle reply.

_Oh no,_ I thought.

"You mean he's gay?" She whispered in disbelief.

_Oh no. _

"Keep this between us, or you'll be cleaning out my cauldrons every night until you graduate." Sev told her.

"Cross my heart Professor." The Slytherin promised and I heard running feet before the door closed.

_Sev, why did you-?_

"Halo won't be happy about that," Pend's voice.

_It's not that Pend, why didn't Sev get mad?_

"Merlin, I know," Sev said. "It almost makes me hope he can't hear us but at the same time-"

"You hope he can."

"Yes,"

_I can hear you, every word you say._ I thought, wondering if they could hear me. I knew they couldn't but it would have been nice.

"She's not the only one that's come here to confess an infatuation." My guardian said. "There have been seven so far, a few young men as well. You may have your hands full when he wakes up."

_She's not? And boys too? Jesus, I must have slept like a stone today..._

I felt the bed indent, felt Sev sit next to me and wrap his arm around my shoulders, hand in my hair as he lounged next to me. "Did you catch any names?"

"The Golden Trio's Hermione," Pend told him. "She only confessed a deep admiration for his intelligence; I believe she sees in him a kindred spirit. The girl that was here before you arrived. I didn't catch any other names I'm afraid."

Sev started to play with my hair, pushing it back from my face and behind my ears; he still hadn't learned that I was the only one who could tame my crazy hair. It was his habit to touch my hair, to play with it, to try and smooth it out. He kissed my cheek lightly, lingering just long enough to spur something light and fuzzy in my stomach.

"Do you want to be alone with him?"

"Yes," Sev said. "Please, just...an hour this time."

"Very well," I heard the door close.

I felt Sev lay almost supine next to me, felt his lips touch my ear. He breathed against my skin, the heat of his breath adding warmth to my skin I hadn't felt in a while. For a moment that was all he did, let his breath flood my ear.

"I miss you lover," He whispered. "I think about you every night, wishing I were holding you against me. Kissing you, making love to you... Wishing we had acted sooner to get you here, to protect you within these walls. If wishes were horses, my love... I love you."

_I think about you too, Sev. I think about waking up with your arms around me after sex, showering together, how you make me laugh in class when you scold some hapless first year. Your black eyes looking into mine when we kiss. It's not what I had with Ryan, but Sev, it's close. Very, very close. _

He kept whispering to me, still stroking my hair, his other hand resting on my chest and feeling my heart beat, I was sure. He always did that, even when we slept together, he would sink down on the bed beside me, put his head on my chest and listen to my heart.

Suddenly I could smell Pend's woodsy scent that made me think of campfires and marshmallows. "Do you need more time with him?" He asked.

Sev got off the bed, hand lingering in my hair.

_Don't leave me Sev._ I thought.

I felt his mouth touch my ear again, his hot breath sending pleased shivers down my spine. "I love you Halo Edwin Spencer." He whispered in my ear. As he kissed me goodbye, I tried to push all those happy, fuzzy-warm things I was feeling into the kiss before I remembered I couldn't move. I wondered if he felt what I had felt...Heat.

Sev left and that woodsy scent got closer until I felt Pend's breath on my neck. He kissed me there, barely a touch of his mouth to my skin, but it was still one of his more tender kisses.

"Wake up my dear Halo," It was an order even though his voice was soft. "Wake up soon."

I've had people tell me they loved me before, my grandparents, a girlfriend when I was in Junior High and Ryan of course. But something about the way that Sev said it, like it was something he'd say right before dying, like his last words. It had almost sounded like a prayer, a promise made to some god in heaven, not three little words whispered in my ear.

How long had he felt that way? Did he expect me to return those words if I woke up? Surely not, I couldn't –wouldn't- fall in love again. Not after Ryan's death, I didn't ever want to feel like I had when I held him dying in the snow, never wanted to be in that dark place again. I felt deep affection for Sev but it wasn't love and it never would be.

I wished I could open my heart to him, maybe take down some of those protective walls I had built up in the last couple months. But I knew I wouldn't. I loved Ryan and he was the only person I would ever love. I would have to tell Sev if I woke up, the only thing between us was the sex. I didn't want to hurt him but I would rather be alone and lonely than with him and still feel alone inside. No one would ever replace that special place in my heart that had belonged to Ryan; no one.


	15. Chapter 14

**DISCLAIMER- So, here is the promised re-write of "the potion master's assistant." Harry Potter belongs to J.K. Rowling, Halo Spencer, however, is mine. Hope everyone enjoys the new version, and I swear I'll finish this one. Also, Pendergast belongs to Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child.**

**Also: The Sidhe is something I read a while back in Laurell K Hamilton's "A Caress of Twilight", the Sidhe are apart of folklore and I think they're fascinating. Look them up some time if you feel I don't cover it well enough. -Gadget**

**CHAPTER 14 Snape's POV**

The full-moon would rise in two hours time and I had taken Pendergast's place at Halo's side while he and Lupin headed into the Forbidden Forest. The two werewolves were going to spend two nights away from the castle to shift and then to recover afterwards. I didn't want to leave my lover without some form of company in case another student should come and accost him like Parkinson had. Although I could only spend a few hours at a time with him, the thought of leaving him completely alone wasn't something I was comfortable doing.

I had spent the previous night lying alone in Halo's room, flat on my back in his still unmade bed, his scent all around me and nearly overwhelming. I could smell the pot he had smoked the night before this mess had begun, thick in the air and covered lightly by the smell of blueberries. It made me crave his body next to mine even more than I had been; I couldn't even remember the last time I had slept in my own bed down in the dungeons.

I had grown agitated, unable to simply lie among his things, needing to move around and just do something to avoid the feeling of uselessness. I cleaned his room, changing the sheets and remaking the bed, I knew that was what House Elves were for, but I wanted to do it myself. When I had been tucking in the sheet, I had found a box hidden beneath the bed. I wasn't sure what made me look, I knew Halo valued his privacy almost as much as I did, but there was still so much about my lover that I didn't know. I pulled the box to me and pushed off the lid; inside the box had been various papers, knick-knacks and a bunch of Muggle pictures of him and Ryan together.

I took the box of pictures with me to Halo's bedside that first night. And sitting there beside him, I looked at every one, smiling at some, looking away in shocked embarrassment at others. The pictures were of nothing sexual but I could see the intimacy between them. There was even one picture were Ryan (I assumed) had held the camera away while they kissed; Halo had been laughing.

One of the pictures that made me smile to myself was of Ryan and Halo curled together on a sofa. Ryan was asleep and spooning the smaller man, one arm underneath his head while the other was wrapped around Halo's torso. His eyes were partially open, looking at whomever had taken the picture with an annoyed expression, one leg thrown over Ryan's while the other touched on the floor. The ginger haired man's face was pressed to his shoulder, as if he were snuggling some treasured teddy bear. It was a position of absolute love, companionship and true comfort and I knew from that one picture that they had indeed loved each other.

Another picture looked to have been taken by someone else because the ginger-haired man had his hands full holding Halo off the ground and over his shoulder; all I could see of my lover was his feet. The last picture I looked at was one of Pendergast and Ryan sitting together on a bench near some stone fountain.

Halo must have taken the picture, both men seemed to have vaguely surprised looks on their face and they looked so out-of-place next to each other. Like they had each stepped from a different era, Ryan in jeans, a red T-shirt with his hair covered by a ball-cap and Pendergast in his black suit, his eyes covered by wire frame sunglasses. But I was certain Halo picked a constant trait in his lovers, if only I could figure out what it was. Their sense of humor, maybe? It wasn't build or even body type because Pendergast and Ryan were very different in their builds. They were both pale with light eyes... maybe that was it; maybe that was how Halo chose his lovers. But then, where did I stand with him? I was pale, yes, but my eyes weren't light, they were very nearly black. Wasn't that breaking his pattern?

I put the pictures away, not even knowing why I looked in the first place. Halo slept soundlessly beside me, not even the sound of his breathing reached my ears although I could easily see the rise and fall of his chest. Merlin, I wanted to hear his voice again, even if it was just to hear him call me 'Ryan' it would still be his voice I was hearing and that would be enough.

"I should have brought a book to read to you," I murmured. "Something by a Muggle author... I'll bring you something tomorrow Halo." I kissed him gently as I stood over him and again I thought I felt warmth emanating from his lips. "Love you."

"I have an idea," Pendergast told me when he arrived in the Hospital Wing after his jaunt under the moon with Lupin.

I looked up from the book called "Blood and Gold" I had been reading to Halo, it was by a Muggle author that he favored. The blonde looked a lot less worn down than I would have expected; Lupin always looked like a drunken cat had dragged his body from a gutter. Pendergast just looked tired, the dark circle under his silver eyes a little more pronounced than they had been a few days before.

"Care to share?" I asked, closing the book and setting it on my lover's pillow.

He came closer and leaned over Halo, touching his lips to the younger man's cheek very lightly. "I'm back my dear Halo," He whispered.

The agent did that every time he came back from wherever he had gone, whether it be to the restroom or outside under the sky. I let it slide; we missed Halo's exuberant company for different reasons. I missed my lover and Pendergast missed his friend; Halo was still alive but neither of us knew how long that would last.

"If-at your next meeting- you could procure something of O'Malley's, Lupin and I can track him and the voodoo doll he's using to hurt Halo." The agent said quickly.

I nodded absently, seeing the first steps of a plan in my head. "And what we would do once we had the doll?" I asked him. "We can't destroy it, and we can't put the doll in a fire because it could have an adverse affect on Halo."

"I know that Snape," The agent hissed. "We need to separate the doll from whatever object it was that O'Malley used."

I arched my brows at him. "I don't understand."

Pendergast ran his hands through his hair. "A voodoo doll needs something of its victim in order to work. That means that O'Malley took something of Halo's- hair, skin or a piece of clothing- and made it into the doll. If we remove that piece then the doll won't have any power."

I looked at Halo asleep in the bed. "He's protected here in the Hospital Wing," I said. "If we separated the piece from the doll while Halo was still here then he wouldn't feel anything that we do to the doll."

"Those are my thoughts exactly Snape."

"I'll do it," I said without even a second thought. Anything to have my lover and my friend returned to me.

The Headmaster approved of our plan, having already grown tired of making up excuses as to why Halo was still in the Hospital Wing. He only asked that Pendergast accompany me under both a Disillusionment Charm and an invisibility cloak. We both agreed and set up more plans in case things went wrong and a few in case everything went as planned.

It was seemed like it was fate; the very next night, the Dark Lord called a meeting of his Inner Circle to witness the punishment of O'Malley for failing his test. It wasn't hard in the least to get what Pendergast required. The agent trailed behind me under both the charm and his borrowed cloak I couldn't even hear his footsteps. I took him outside the castle's gates and, grabbing his arm when I felt him brush against my side, I Apparated us to the meeting.

When we landed at the meeting place- half a kilometer outside Malfoy Manor- Pendergast fell onto the snow covered ground, the cloak riding up about his ankles. In a moment he was back on his feet, cloak righted and invisible to my eyes.

"Quite a ride," I heard him murmur.

"You get used to it; Portkey travel is much rougher."

He was silent and once again I didn't even hear his footsteps as he trailed me. It was a good five minute walk to the Manor's entrance, where Lucius was waiting, his face covered by the white Death Eater's mask. He nodded to me, turning his back and I followed him inside.

"Our Lord wants you here for the Muggle's punishment." He said.

Pendergast and I followed him, the agent trailing me undetected. We came to a room lighted only by floating candles, nearly twenty Death Eaters stood in a semi-circle around the kneeling Muggle whose blood was on the ground in several small puddles.

The Muggle barely cast his eyes to our entrance before various voices cried; "Crucio!" O'Malley screamed until the vessels in his throat ruptured and blood fell from his lips. This went on for a long time until he finally stopped screaming and I only heard the gurgle of blood passing through his ruined throat.

The Dark Lord gestured for me and another faceless Death Eater to come forward and remove the body. He then spouted off some routine speech about his expecting results when he gave some one a 'test of skills.' Once I was alone with O'Malley, a simple "Accio voodoo doll." brought the object into my hands. Now I just had to wait for the meeting to end, then Pendergast and I could revive Halo.

**Author's Note: Sorry for the shortness of this chapter and the amount of time it took me to write it. I'm also sorry it's rather lackluster. By the way, the book Snape was reading to Halo, Blood and Gold is by Anne Rice; it's a good read for you vampire lovers out there. - Gadget**


	16. Chapter 15

**DISCLAIMER- So, here is the promised re-write of "the potion master's assistant." Harry Potter belongs to J.K. Rowling, Halo Spencer, however, is mine. Hope everyone enjoys the new version, and I swear I'll finish this one. Also, Pendergast belongs to Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child.**

**Also: The Sidhe is something I read a while back in Laurell K Hamilton's "A Caress of Twilight", the Sidhe are apart of folklore and I think they're fascinating. Look them up some time if you feel I don't cover it well enough. -Gadget**

**CHAPTER 15 Halo's POV**

My grandmother used to sit in a rocking chair on the front porch, knitting and looking out over our property. She would sit in that chair for several hours a day, just knitting and staring at the grass. Sometimes she would be reading some thick and boring looking novel but it was always in that damn chair on the porch.

I have no idea why that particular thought had entered my mind while I listened to Sev's silky voice reading me the vampire novel. But it made me realize that I had spent a lot of time in my life just sitting on porches and calmly watching people do random things. Grandmother would knit while grandpa smoked and Ryan... well, he'd sit on the banister and tweak the cords on his bass. I could see it all in my head; I wasn't even listening to Sev read anymore, just reliving minor moments in my life that suddenly didn't seem so minor any more.

I still had several memories of my early years with my grandparents, actually, the first memory I had was when my grandpa had given me my first stuffed dragon. I had been three, playing in the front yard with a few toys, trucks, I think. Then my grandpa had knelt in the dirt in front of me and held out this cat-sized stuffed dragon. They had bought the dragon in the American equivalent of Diagon Alley (I can't remember the name of it now) but the dragon had breathed fire and growled and cuddled me depending on my mood. I remember I had named the dragon Atreyu; I think my grandmother still has it somewhere. I hoped so; I sort of missed the little thing.

Sev continued to read to me. "_'And you live this way,' Said Thorn, 'in the very mist of mortals, and you are safe from them?'_" Here, Sev's voice changed to let me know the other character in the book was speaking. "_'They do not believe in us now,' Said Marius, 'No matter what they see, they don't believe. And wealth buys anything.' His blue eyes seemed earnest and his was face calm as if he had no evil secrets inside, as though he had no hatred for anyone. But he did..."_

I tuned out again, usually I liked Anne Rice's novels, but it was more fun to read them than to have them read to me. Or to at least be able to read along while I listened to the book on CD, but now I just couldn't pay attention.

Sometimes, I remembered, grandpa would tell me stories about my mom while I held that stuffed dragon in my lap. He never told me stories about my Sidhe father; I guess he was afraid the dragon would spit flame at him if he so much as mentioned the bastard to me. Atreyu had always been very clever at reading what I was feeling; it made interacting with people so much easier when I went through my 'silent phase' as my grandmother had called it.

I heard the Hospital Wing doors swing open, quick footsteps and then Pend's voice. "I have an idea," He sounded excited, giddy even.

Sev stopped reading and I felt the weight of the book as it was set near my head. "Care to share?"

Pend ignored him momentarily, coming to my side and kissing my cheek. He always did that, it actually drove me a little crazy. "I'm back my dear Halo." He murmured into my ear and that drove me even crazier and so not in the fun way that he was a master of.

"If-at your next meeting- you could procure something of O'Malley's, Lupin and I can track him and the voodoo doll he's using to hurt Halo." Pend said, still sounding uncharacteristically excited.

"And what we would do once we had the doll?" Sev scoffed. "We can't destroy it, and we can't put the doll in a fire because it could have an adverse affect on Halo."

_Could it?_ I wondered. I only knew a few little tidbits about voodoo; I knew that distance didn't matter only the power of the caster did. And O'Malley was strong; I was genuinely surprised that the spell hadn't managed to penetrate the protection charms of the Hospital Wing. Don't get me wrong, I was very grateful; I just thought O'Malley had more power than that.

"I know that Snape," Pend hissed at him. "We need to separate the doll from whatever object it was that O'Malley used."

"I don't understand."

God, sometimes other wizards really got on my nerves. It seemed like they didn't even study – or hell, even _think_ about- other forms of magic. The type you didn't need a wand to cast, just and object and your will to do whatever it was you wanted to do. True, that type of magic was very dangerous, but what was even more dangerous was the lack of collective knowledge surrounding said magics.

"A voodoo doll needs something of its victim in order to work." Pend told Sev. "That means that O'Malley took something of Halo's- hair, skin or a piece of clothing- and made it into the doll. If we remove that piece then the doll won't have any power."

"He's protected here in the Hospital Wing," Sev said, like he was just thinking out loud. "If we separated the piece from the doll while Halo was still here then he wouldn't feel anything that we do to the doll."

"Those are my thoughts exactly Snape." Pend muttered, sounding a little miffed with my lover. He was probably just frustrated with having to explain himself so thoroughly because he would never have explained his actions otherwise.

"I'll do it," I heard Sev say and then softly, closer to my ear, so close I could feel the heat of his breath. "Anything to have you returned to me..."

Madame Pomfrey gave me a potion that I guess was to help me sleep (not that I needed it) but after I was force-fed it, I started to feel sort of light and airy. Maybe it had been to take away any pain I would feel when Sev and Pend broke the voodoo doll's spell on me. I wondered if I would feel any pain, or if it would just be like when O'Malley had cast the spell originally. I wondered how long it would take before I woke up, how long before I started to feel warm again instead of just numb and cold and empty inside.

I slept; I don't know how long.

I thought I was dreaming when I opened my eyes to see a curtain of black hair that wasn't my own just a few inches in front of my face. A moment later I realized it wasn't a dream and that I was awake and that Sev was leaning over me, a slight smile on his face. My vision was blurry and I was groggy but I was finally awake.

"Mr. Spencer?" Sev questioned and I remembered our promise to only use our first names when we were alone together or just with someone that already knew we were together. "Do you know where you are?"

"Hospital Wing?" I ventured, once again feeling like my tongue was super-glued to the roof of my mouth.

He nodded. "Do you know what's happened to you? Why you're here?"

I did, but I abruptly realized I could pretend that nothing had ever happened if I wanted to. I could pretend that I hadn't heard everything they said while I was 'in stasis.' I could pretend I hadn't heard Sev's confession of love and I realized I _wanted_ to. I wanted to be ignorant of the last few weeks and just start over, or to just pick up where I left off. I wanted a clean slate.

"I remember..." I paused for effect, drawing my brows together in concentration. "I remember waking up with you and Pend saying you were gonna take me here...then nothing."

Sev furrowed his brow at me and I wondered if he was casting Legilimency at me, it took me a second to realize he wasn't but was in fact just studying me. Just seeing if I was okay without using magic and I relaxed just a bit. His look was one of relief; he was contented to see that I was okay. Or maybe he was just relieved that I couldn't remember anything, maybe he was having doubts about his confession to me.

"Where's Pend?" I asked.

"I'm here Halo." Came Pend's mellifluous voice from somewhere over Sev's shoulder.

I smiled softly. "Hiya,"

"Hello Halo," He returned, his voice gentle.

"Can I go back to my room now?" I asked.

Madame Pomfrey hadn't wanted to let me leave, neither had Sev but Pend had argued that I would begin to 'heal' much faster if I was in my room and surrounded by my stuff and the things that made me comfortable. In the end, Pend and I won out and I got to go back to my room.

There was a fire going when I got there, I figured a House Elf must have lighted it because the guys had been with me. My room was very warm, very comfortable feeling and I felt at home the moment I opened the door. Felt safe the moment I laid back on my bed, felt complete the moment that the guys laid down to either side of me.

I turned to Pend first, stroking my hand over the pale stubble on his chin, it was soft under my hand but he arched his brows at the impromptu contact.

"I like this," I said, running my thumb back and forth on his jaw. "It looks good on you."

He didn't say anything but his eyes lit up a little. I turned to lay flat on my back, looking up at my ceiling. I could feel their breathing, could almost hear their heartbeats. I had missed this so very much.

"So," I said, remembering my feigned ignorance of the last few weeks. "What's been going on?"

They were silent for several moments. Either they couldn't decide what to tell me or they were deciding not to tell me. Then Pend sat up, leaning his shoulders against the headboard, crossing his arms over his chest. Sev remained unmoved, lying beside me utterly silent. Something about his silence bothered me and I found myself realizing that maybe he _did use_ Legitimacy when I told him I didn't remember anything; maybe he knew I was lying and he was upset.

I felt my jaws clamp shut. He could get over it; he _needed_ to get over it. I already told him I would never love again, not him, not Pend and not anyone else that happened to cross my path. I was done, thoroughly done with that shit.

"Well?" I asked, getting bored with the silence.

"After you asked us not to take you to the Hospital Wing, we did just that. However, no-one was able to revive you and we weren't quite sure how to proceed. You were unconscious for some time." Pend began, not looking at me.

_What the fuck is up with these two?!_

"We figured out O'Malley had taken something of yours, probably when he attacked you outside the Three Broomsticks. I went with Snape to a Death Eater meeting where the Dark Lord was, ah, punishing O'Malley for his failed attempt on your life. He was killed and Snape and I destroyed the voodoo doll along with whatever it was of yours he had used. Simplistic really, Halo."

_If you say so..._I thought. "How long was I out?" I asked, just for good measure. I was sure if I looked in a mirror I would be able to tell exactly how long I had been 'sleeping' even though Sidhe (even half-breeds like me) had little to no body hair, I still managed stubble akin to what Pend had, just much darker in my case.

"It's January 15th Halo." Pend told me and I suddenly felt numb.

The anniversary of Ryan's death was one day away. It hadn't felt like an entire year, hell, it hadn't even felt like a lifetime. There were moments everyday, even here in Hogwarts, where I still thought he was going to walk through the door and ask me what was up. I put my hands over my eyes, kneading them with my fingertips. A whole year, a whole motherfucking year and I had barely noticed.

So, sorry for the wait and yet another cheesy chapter, my creative juices are running dry with Finals at school and I'm spread a tad thin. I'll get to work on the final chapter as soon as I can. –Gadget


	17. Epilogue

**DISCLAIMER- So, here is the promised re-write of "the potion master's assistant." Harry Potter belongs to J.K. Rowling, Halo Spencer, however, is mine. Hope everyone enjoys the new version, and I swear I'll finish this one. Also, Pendergast belongs to Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child.**

**Also: The Sidhe is something I read a while back in Laurell K Hamilton's "A Caress of Twilight", the Sidhe are apart of folklore and I think they're fascinating. Look them up some time if you feel I don't cover it well enough. -Gadget**

**EPILOGUE Snape's POV**

Pendergast left later that night after telling Halo how long it had been since he'd talked to someone named Constance. I could only guess it was his daughter, he was old enough for offspring but my lover had never said anything about the blonde man having children. It just seemed like the sort of thing Halo would mention, but I didn't ask about it. Actually, I didn't even get the chance to ask my lover anything. The moment after he had taken the agent back to America via Floo Powder, he went into the bathroom and I heard the shower running for a long time, an hour maybe.

I could only imagine the pleasure of a real shower after several weeks of only cleansing spells; it must feel like heaven. When he finally came out, wearing only a tower about his waist, I saw on his body just how long it had been. He was so skinny, not slender like I remembered him, but _skinny._ I could make out the shape of his ribs under his skin and he'd removed his nipple ring and was holding it loosely in his fingers. His hair was still dripping water and I was reminded of the day this entire mess had started, the day he'd gone under the ice and O'Malley had decided to extract his...whatever you wanted to call it. Revenge? Punishment? The day he'd placed the spell on my lover for the Dark Lord.

He didn't say anything, just went to his dresser and pulled out a pair of pajama pants. He cast his eyes over his bare shoulder at me, asking me without speaking to give him some privacy. I turned my back on him, only turning around again when I heard him jump on the bed. He lay with his arms crossed over his stomach, staring up at the ceiling; he looked very pale against the black bed-sheet and I couldn't wait until the winter weather was over with so he could get some sun.

"Halo..." I had to swallow my pride, had to just let the words out. "I missed having you around." Those weren't the words I had wanted to say, but I suddenly found myself in the same position as Parkinson. Halo was awake now, able to answer me and I just couldn't say those damned three words.

He was silent, and I saw him close his eyes. "I know," He muttered. "I could hear you."

I felt my eyebrows shoot up. "You could hear me?"

Halo nodded. "Every word," He said. "Every word that everyone said, I heard it all. Hermione, Pansy, Zabini even. And you, of course."

I froze in the action of climbing on the bed beside him, one knee poised on the mattress. I had suspected as much, but to actually hear Halo confess it...was something very different, I had known but now I _knew_. I sat down, not wanting to be too close to him all of a sudden in the light of his confession. Merlin, he'd lied to Pendergast, he'd lied to me and I had been none the wiser. If he hadn't said anything, I wouldn't have known.

"You can't honestly believe you're in love with me, Professor." He said, his tone sounding incredulous.

"Professor?" I questioned his use of my title. "Why the formality?"

He didn't so much as shrug. "It seemed apt to call you that. Why, don't like it?"

"No," I said. "I don't like it, not from you Halo, not anymore anyway."

"Get over it," He hissed.

I arched my eyebrows at the younger man.

"Over me," He specified. "Get over me, over your obsession and your childish notion of love."

"What are you saying Halo?" I asked him though I knew. It couldn't be true, not after all this time, not after everything I had done to bring him back safely. Not after risking my life to go against the Dark Lord, he couldn't possibly be saying what I thought he was.

"Isn't it obvious Professor?" He didn't even move, just sat there against the headboard shooting me an unreadable look. I remembered once thinking that if I could just see his eyes, he would be so much easier to read; how wrong I had been. "I'm saying it's over. You, me, _us_, is over with. Was that too hard to figure out or do I need to be more clear?"

I cast my gaze over to him, disbelieving, thinking just maybe he was joking. Playing some new game with me; he played them often but this time, he wasn't. He meant everything he said.

"Why?" I asked. "Why now after all this time?"

"All this time?" Halo repeated. "It's only been a few months, hardly a lot of time to make anything out of our 'relationship' even if I had wanted to, Professor."

"So I was just another notch in your belt? That's what you're saying?"

"Pretty much, yeah. If you're done, get out."

I stood, reining in my urge to Crucio him into oblivion; it wouldn't earn me anything other than a calm mind. But Halo still meant a lot to me, I was sure he was only acting this way because of the date. That had to be the reason why, Halo had never been mean just because he could.

At the door, my calmness wore out and I looked over my shoulder at him, anger burning in my eyes while his yellow-gold-orange ones were utterly empty. "Fucking Sidhe half-breed, I should have just let O'Malley kill you."

I was almost out the door when I heard him speak. "You really should have. Now get out."

I didn't even look back... I still loved him, still wanted him. But at the same time, I hated him.

**Halo's POV**

I was fairly proud of myself for not running after Sev when he slammed the door. I wanted to, wanted to tell him why I had ended 'us' but it didn't really matter and truthfully it wasn't any of his fucking business. I held my hand up in front of my face, calling forth my hand of power and I felt an immense relief when my hand was covered by flame. After a moment, I willed the flame away, I knew I had been 'sleeping' for nearly four weeks, but I was exhausted.

I curled up on my side, willing the lights in my room to diminish and they did. Minutes later, I was asleep and I didn't dream.

Months went by, January 16th came and went and I spent the entire day smoking the remainder of my marijuana. I had yet to explain my reasons for breaking up with Sev to anyone other than Pend. I hadn't told Sev or Remus or the Headmaster when he's asked. As it turned out, the aging wizard had agreed to hire me in the hope of bringing Sev out of his shell. True, for a time, I had succeeded, at least until O'Malley's final attack and the Death Eater's confession while I was unconscious. I didn't tell Dumbledore about that either; it was between me and Sev even though I refused to acknowledge it.

I still worked as his assistant on my usual days, but there was a strained silence between us. So strained, in fact, I was sure several of the students felt it too. No one confronted either of us, much to my luck; Sev didn't even speak to me in class. I deserved the silent treatment, but I had thought the man was smart enough to understand why I did what I did, even if I didn't just come out and say it.

By the last week of the year, I couldn't take it any more. I was going back to America, I like Europe, don't get me wrong, but I missed New England and hanging out with Pend and my few school friends. Europe was great but there was nothing for me to do there anymore and America would always be home. I wanted to go back so bad, but not before I had a talk with Sev.

So I picked a day to do it, the day before the last of school. That afternoon I stood in front of my mirror wearing the same clothes I had worn the first time Sev kissed me. I wanted him to see what I remembered as a good time. But I got to thinking maybe the sight of my clothes and the memory associated with them would have the opposite effect and he would only be harder to deal with. I sighed and changed into a green shirt over the black jeans. It would have to do.

I knew the way to Sev's personal rooms down in the dungeon even if I had never been inside and given the time – 8pm- I figured that was the best place to start. I knocked six times before he answered, looking down his nose at me and I got to thinking that this was probably a bad idea and I should just go to America and forget about it all.

"What do you want Spencer?" He demanded.

I swallowed. "Just to talk with you,"

"Now's not a good time-"

"Bullshit Sev, it's the end of the year, you can spare ten minutes." I argued.

He didn't move from the doorway and I sighed in aggravation. "Just say what you came to say."

"Fine," I said. "I wanted to apologize for breaking up with you. God Sev, you told me you loved me, I don't know how you expected me to act. I just wanted to say I'm sorry for how I've treated you and ignored you these last few months. I'm sorry Sev."

He was silent, looking at me from under the curtain of his black hair.

"I'm going back to America, to see my friends. I just wanted to tell you before I left... I'll see you around Sev."

I started to walk away and I actually made it a few steps before he finally spoke.

"I didn't mean it when I said I should have let O'Malley kill you." He said softly.

I turned back, a forced smile lighting my features. "Doesn't matter Sev," I said. "You should have...y'know, let him kill me. It would have been better for both of us."

"I still love you," He started to move toward me and I took a quick step back.

"I don't care Sev but I hope that helps you sleep at night when I'm not there. I'll see you around maybe."

"You're not coming back next year?" Fucking hell, he gave me a look like I had kicked his puppy.

"I don't know," I told him. "Probably not though."

I was gone by the next day, only stopping long enough to say goodbye to Remus, Harry, Ron and Hermione. I didn't think I could say goodbye to Sev without begging him to come with me to America.

When I got to England, I found a payphone and called Pend to let him know I would be stopping by his place when I got off the plane. He invited me to stay for a few weeks before I went to my grandparent's house. It sounded like a plan even though Constance and I would have to put up with each other.

On the plane, I leafed through a box of pictures, smiling at nearly all of them. I had gone a long time without looking at them, but Ryan's face had started to fade from my mind and I wouldn't allow that to happen. I wanted his face in my memories for all time, he was the only person I loved and the only person I ever would.

**End.**

So, thanks to everyone that read the Prince of Flame, my first ever Harry Potter fic and probably the longest story I've ever written. I had fun writing it and I hope everyone that read it had fun doing so. I don't know yet if I'll write another one. I'm sort of thinking about writing what happened before Halo went to Hogwarts (the events directly after Ryan's death) but I've yet to decide anything definite. Again, thank you so much for reading! - Gadget


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